Heroism
by maximaxx
Summary: I'm the Hero, right? I do all that amazing stuff that heroes do and even more! So why does everyone doubt me? Why does everyone think I killed that guy! That's so not heroic at all! Y-you believe me, right? No one else does!
1. I'm the Hero!

«_I'm planning to kill someone you hate, are you interested?_ »

The voice was mechanical, unearthly, distorted beyond recognition, for obvious reasons, and he bet that if he tried to track the signal his cellphone had received, he wouldn't find anything.

His mouth dry, shaking so ever slightly at the thought, he answered:

«It depends, who do you have in mind? »

The smile of the other remained unseen, but, had it been, it would have been enough for the nation to take back his words.

* * *

«Damn it all! » he shouted, barely resisting the urge to throw away his PlayStation's remote through the window and into the night.

How could he, the Hero, lose to some Nazis in a shooting game? That was complete bullshit! Things didn't even happen that way back then! Oh, he could remember it all so well. He was there, facing billions of enemies all by himself, yelling insults as they all fell under the assault of his awesomeness, just as he freed all the poor oppressed people!

That game was obviously broken.

«Sucker! » Tony's voice boomed in the house.

Damn, that alien of his was really loud. He could barely hear himself rant on his past heroism with all that noise!

Geez, what was it with people and their lack of recognition in his glorious actions today? Afghanistan had blew a few fuses during the world meeting and started going on how he was just a fraud pretending to be a hero.

Alfred's expression darkened considerably. He was a Hero! No one had the right to contest that after all he was doing for the world!

«How dare you pretend to be a hero when all you do is spread war on people that refuse your ideals? » that blasted fool had screamed in the middle of the world meeting.

At that time, the nations had been frozen in stupor. Oh, it was a common occurrence for people to yell in that particular room. What was more shocking was the venom dripping in Afghanistan's voice.

It was horrifying how much broken he looked. Tears were raining down from his face as the tan man was glaring at Alfred. Those eyes looked made to kill, to destroy what had destroyed him. If he had been in the wrong, surely the American would have felt unease, maybe even shame, but he was right! It was stupid terrorist's fault!

Instead of an apology, he shouted with indignation.

«WHAT? I'M THE FREAKING HERO! I'M DOING EVERYTHING I CAN TO HELP YOUR GOVERNMENT AND WOMEN'S RIGHTS IN YOUR PLACE! »

Of course, that was followed by a collective groan of exasperation for the majority of the nations. Quite a few, Russia among others, failed to have a proper reaction and acted as usual, but two others, Canada and Australia, looked struck with sadness.¸

«Liar… » Afghanistan muttered. «Liar… liar, liar, liar, liar, liar, liar, liar, liar, liar, liar, LIAR! YOU'RE JUST A LIAR! YOU'VE DONE NOTHING BUT BRING WAR TO ME! »

«I'M NOT A LIAR! » Alfred replied, just about ready to lunge at the damn nation.

A pair of arms wrapped around his torso just in time to stop him. They were slightly tan and he recognized the sleeves, but it was truly the voice that sold Australia away.

«Don't do it, mate! » he pleaded, desperately trying to stop Alfred from doing something he'd probably regret later.

«You bloody git! Can't you resolve anything without fighting? » England commented.

«_Ah, l'Angleterre_, you are always so fixated on the poor boy. Why don't you let me make you forget about him for a while? » was France's immediate flirty reply.

Predictably, England repelled the sexual assault while being as red as a tomato and feeling like beating up a certain Frog. The fact that it took place right after his comment on America's violence left a few nations thinking about how much the two nations were similar.

Distracted by the little scene pulled by the two European nations, the attention on America was lessened and that was a big mistake on Australia's part. No one was strong enough to hold him back when he was in this state, especially not if they weren't putting it their all!

He broke free of Australia's grip and jumped on the man that had dared said that, that had dared doubt how much of a hero he was!

Another pair of hand came in between the two fighters, this time much softer, but at the same time, stronger.

«Stop it, both of you! » came the unusually loud voice of Canada.

Okay, it was totally because a hero listens to his brother from time to time that he stopped and NOT because that arm was really preventing him from moving, no way. As if Mattie was as strong as him! He was way too soft for that! Seriously, he was carrying a polar bear, a damn _baby_ polar bear, in his arms, all the time!

Alfred, of course, failed to take note that Kumajirou was much heavier than he looked, but that's just a detail. Why would heroes bother with details?

For a moment, it seemed as if the fight would be stopped at such an early stage.

Alfred was no longer trying to attack Afghanistan, which was quite a feat for the shy boy to pull.

It was just a shame that he had failed to take into account someone's grudge.

«You hypocrite! How can you look at yourself in the mirror? I'm a peacekeeper, yet I support every one of my brother's stupid wars! » the tan man spat at the Canadian.

Shaken, Matthew backed away, eyes tearing up.

It was that last thing that really made Alfred snap, not the insults, not the part where he denied his obvious heroism, it was the fact that he made his little brother cry!

In a scream of rage, he threw a punch at Afghanistan and felt with a savage satisfaction the man's nose breaking under his fist.

Right after that, things degenerated. Some tried to separate them, only for them to be thrown back against other nations which immediately took offense to that and started fighting as well. Of course, Russia took it as his signal to take out his pipe and things pretty much hit rock bottom. Soon enough, the whole room was caught in a massive brawl, save for a few sane ones (though Germany was starting to question how long he'd retain his sanity).

Thinking about it made Alfred cringe in spite. That had nothing to do with the few sore spot on his body. No, the fight had been totally one-sided and he absolutely saw the commie bastard come from behind him to smack him with his pipe. With the strength all his heroism was giving him, he had crushed his opponents in that battle, though maybe he shouldn't have beaten up Prussia. Mattie was quite fond of the albino for some reason.

He shrugged. Meh, it wasn't his fault the guy had started a fight with him spouting about his awesomeness (which, minds you is nonsense, the only one awesome in that room was Alfred… and MAYBE, just maybe, Mattie). Plus, he'd survived. When you live through the dissolution of your country, you could live through anything.

Once more, his character died at the hand of the machine.

«What? »

His Playstation was a cheating bastard! That was the only explanation! And it needed to pay!

The machine was spared from his wrath by the sounds of his cellphone going off.

«Huh? Who could be calling this late into the night? »

«_Alfred? Did I wake you up? _» Matthew asked softly.

«Why would I be asleep? » he replied, frowning in confusion.

«_It's three in the morning, Al. What have you been doing? _»

This time, something sounded wrong, so very wrong about his little brother's voice. It was filled with… fear.

«Mattie? Are you alright? » Alfred asked, concerned, since, of course, that's how a hero acts.

«_Y-you stayed in your house, right? Y-you haven't gone around and wandered around the place where we hold the world meeting, have you? _»

«Why would I do that? That's so suspicious, totally un-hero like! »

A sight of relief was perfectly audible from the other side of the line.

Now, Alfred was seriously worried. Why was his brother acting like that? It's as if he was worried for _him_, you don't worry about the hero!

«_That's really great, Alfred! _» Matthew continued, ignoring his brother's demands for explanation. However, his tone returned to being shaky when he announced the reason of his call. «_Germany called for an emergency meeting. _»

«Huh? Why? »

«_He'll explain everything when we get there. Stay where you are, I'm going to pick you up, okay? _»

With a bad feeling, Alfred agreed.

* * *

Luckily, his place was not too far from the one they held the world meeting. Being the host nation, he should have stayed in the same hotel as everyone else, but, after the fight that had erupted, he had stormed to his house and pretended to kill Nazis until Matthew called.

As he was being driven to the place (Matthew never let him drive him anywhere! Tch, blow a fire hydrant once and no one will let you forget! ), he had noticed the concern on Matthew's face as he shot him looks when he thought he didn't notice. What was the deal with that? He was acting as if the Hero that he was was in trouble.

Alfred would have eaten his words right there if he had known.

When they arrived, the atmosphere was tense and heavy. No country was acting like they usually were. They were all serious – how was that even possible? – and their expression were grave. Even the most happy, aka oblivious, nations like Feliciano were not smiling. This couldn't just be the lack of sleep.

As soon as they noticed him, the silence got heavier, thicker. The way they were standing created a barrier between him and the building. From that formation, only he and his brother were absent. For a moment, nations only stared at each other, trying to find read one another. A few looked quite disturbed. After a few minutes, Germany cleared his throat to speak.

«Ah, America. We were waiting for you. » he said, hiding something unreadable behind that apparent calm.

Once more, Alfred frowned. Huh? What was that?

«Of course you were! Explain the situation to your Hero! » Alfred flashed them his most famous grin.

He caught a whispered «Bloody git… » as England looked at something that Alfred still hadn't noticed.

«What was that, Iggy? » he asked innocently, knowing that would make the gentleman angry.

Before things could get out of hand, Germany buried the protest with another intervention.

«This is no time for fighting! We are facing a crisis! »

Alfred blinked. A crisis? No wonder they were waiting for him to arrive!

Germany led him through the ranks of his fellow nations. Quietly, they moved out of his way, unnaturally might he say. Belgium even shrieked when his shoulder brushed hers.

Okay, it was probably just the fact that she was not used to touching a real Hero like him…

In the back of his mind though, he was starting to have doubts on that. Too many things didn't add up.

Germany then pointed to him a spot on the ground and everything froze in place.

Afghanistan was lying on the floor.

He was covered in blood.

Way too much blood.

His throat was opened and his eyes were lifeless, forever staring at the sky.

«W-what happened? » Alfred turned to Germany.

«We do not know, America. Someone found the body and called the police. Our leaders took care of it from that point on. »

«Why? Who would do such a thing? »

Germany had nothing to answer. He simply stared intensively at the American. Feeling a strange feeling in his guts, Alfred turned around to face the other nations.

«Why are you looking at me like that? »


	2. Oh, THAT's the reason you doubt me

«This is nuts! » Alfred shouted. «You can't suspect me! I'm the Hero! »

How could they? Lock him up in a room inside the building and just let him wait for the reports of the experts. What did they expect to find? His DNA all over the corpse? He had no idea of what had happened before his brother brought him here!

«Bloody hell, Alfred! Will you just shut up with that already? We told you it was just a formality! You're a suspect among many others! »

«Why am I even a suspect? Because I had a fight with Afghanistan yesterday? » the American continued his loud rant.

«Yes, you idiot, that's precisely why! »

«That's not enough of a reason! »

«We know, Alfred. That's why Arthur said it was a formality. » Matthew said quietly.

«But Mattiiiiiiie… » the Hero whined (that's what it sounded to others but it was not whining, heroes don't whine). «I told you I was playing a shooter game on my Playstation 3 all night. That proves I didn't do it! »

That certainly caused Arthur to freeze in place.

«D-do you have a way to prove you did? »

«I was with Tony, you can just ask him. » Alfred relied with a shrug.

Unfortunately, there was a hesitant silence following his answer. Confused, the American looked back and forth toward his brother and his adoptive father.

«What? »

«Hum… Alfred… I don't think the opinion of your alien friend will be considered. M-most nations considers he just says non-sense all the time, due to his… you know… swearing habits? » Matthew explained. «Not to mention that not everyone can see him…»

«What? But… »

«You'll have to find something else, lad. Wasn't there anyone that visited you during that time? An official, someone from your defense department, a delivery bot, anyone? » The Englishman enumerated, a bit less calm than he was letting on.

His little bo… no, the bloody git was way too stupid and honest to do something like that, wasn't he? He wouldn't assassinate someone that irritated him! That had to be a coincidence… or something much more sinister.

Shivering despite his efforts, he missed the American's reply.

«Iggy! Are you even listening to me? » Alfred said as he snapped his finger in front of England's face a few time.

«Don't call me that! » Arthur ordered while hiding his blush.

«Sure, Iggy, I won't call you that again, Iggy. »

Alfred really could not stop himself from flashing him his most famous heroic grin. In a similar fashion, neither Matthew nor Arthur could stop themselves from letting out a sight of exasperation.

«This is serious, you idiot! We have to know if you had an alibi! This would make our lives a lot easier! » England finally snapped.

«An alibi? You mean like in those cool action movies? Of course I don't, the Hero never has one! »

This time, it was two loud groans of pain. There was a limit to how much heroism the two other nations could take.

«What? Hey, I bet you don't have one either! » Alfred replied, annoyed at their lack of admiration.

For some reason, the question caused Arthur to blush furiously.

«For your information, young man, I do have an alibi! »

«Oh yeah, what is it? » Alfred pushed his advantage, smug at the embarrassment the older nation was displaying.

Were Alfred and Matthew dreaming or Arthur was flustering ?

«I… I was… oh bloody hell, that's nothing you need to know about! »

The North American twins simultaneously raised an eyebrow at the comment. He was definitely hiding something. Of course, judging from his reaction, it had less to do with the murder and more with something of a completely different nature.

Shrugging it off, Alfred turned to Matthew.

«What about you, bro? Do you have an alibi? »

As always the Canadian spoke quietly.

«I was sleeping at the time. Kumajaga can testify it. » lifting slightly his pet polar bear.

«Who? » was the inevitable answer.

«Err… forget it… » Matthew sighted sadly. Was it too much to ask not to be forgotten by your talking bear at least once?

An uncomfortable silence followed the exchange. Alfred soon started twitching, eager to do something, but having no idea of what he could do. Damn, how would a hero react when his brother was sad, because of his polar bear no less?

Fortunately, he was spared from having to delve upon this nearly impossible puzzle by the opening of the door.

Australia was the first to enter, quickly followed by Germany. Their expressions were all the same: disturbed, tired and wary. Frankly, they looked as if they had been the witness of a very unpleasant spectacle and, considering what had happened tonight, it was probably the case.

«Jack? » Matthew called, somewhat surprised to see him. «Why are you here? »

«I thought I'd look at the hints left behind, but… » the Aussie stopped. There was some deep unease behind those eyes.

«Yes? » they pressed him to continue, much to his dismay.

«Well, mate's here might… be in trouble. »Jack reluctantly admitted.

«How come? I haven't done anything! » Alfred immediately protested, loudly. When would someone get that he was in his house the whole time and that he was such a Hero that he wouldn't sink low enough to murder someone?

If Jack could look more uneasy, he probably would. Honestly, he believed that Alfred was innocent; it was just that… after what he had been shown... maybe there were some details troubling him.

Seeing as Australia had no idea on how to reply to the infuriated North American, Germany finally stepped in.

« America, I ask that you follow us so you can understand our suspicions. There is something you have to explain. Come. »

Okay, since when did _Germany_ had a right to order the Hero around? That was just the straw to break the camel's back. Alfred took a deep breath, preparing to give the stupid nation a piece of his mind. As he was about to unleash a well-deserved rant on the other's stupidity, he heard a quiet but firm order.

«Al, don't. »

They turned around to see Matthew staring at his brother, a cold serious seething from him. None could stop themselves from shivering as he moved forward and grabbed Alfred by his right arm.

«This is not the time for a stupid rant, Al. Let's just go. »

The American stared at his _shy_ little brother with his jaw hanging. Where did the shy behaviour go and when did he grow a spine? Technically, he was not the only one surprised, Germany was suddenly extremely hesitant and Australia looked particularly uncomfortable with this turn of event, but he sure was unable to think of an answer. As if on cue, Arthur cleared his throat to grab everyone's attention.

«Yes, let's go. The sooner you explain whatever Germany wants you to, the sooner we can solve all of this bloody mess and get back to sleep. »

For once, Alfred decided to listen to the British man. What? It's not like he wanted to make a habit out of it. Yeah, he'd have plenty of time later to return to ignoring every one of his advices, grating the old man's nerves. At the thought, he could not hold back a grin and lightened up.

It was unfortunate that Germany happened to be the one looking at him at that moment. A frown marking his traits, the German asked, his voice letting out a hint of wariness, why he was smiling in such circumstances. Not letting it affect him, Alfred just replied cheerfully that he was thinking of bugging «Iggy» which of course threw England in a low-voice rant about the «bloody yank» being an ungrateful little…

Fearing that the situation was on the verge of escaping his control, Germany grabbed both conflicting parties and turned them toward the door.

«Go, now! We've lost enough time as it is. »

«Hey, watch it! » Alfred growled. «That's the Hero you're ordering around! »

«Oh shut up, Alfred. » England hissed, tired of all this nonsense.

Sighting, the remaining nations just decided to ignore those two for the time being. There were much more important things to think about. For example, if it was not America, who could it be? Who hated Afghanistan enough to do this? Or… perhaps it was more… who had enough to gain of his death?

«Hey, Jack, what is it that made you frown like that when you entered? » Matthew asked softly, letting both his brother and his surrogated father take the lead.

«Err… » the Aussie muttered, seemingly bothered. «There haven't been anything _incriminating_ discovered, but… it's just… something really weird. »

«Huh? Like what? »

«Well, the scene of the crime is void of evidences. No hair, no blood, no skin, no imprints, nothing. It could have been a ghost for that matter. »

«Hum… » Matthew pondered as the information was processed in his head. «Basically that means that we don't have anything to prove Alfred's innocence yet. »

«Yeah… you can say that. » Jack said without conviction.

Of course, that made Matthew frown and stare at him for an explanation.

«What is it? »

Such a simple question, yet the answer was something he feared as much as he wanted. It had to be some bad news. The look on Jack's face was more than enough proof.

«Well, I wouldn't say he's off the hook for now. » he said to dodge the question.

A feeling of dread descended on the Canadian. Exactly what had been found out about the murder that could lead to Alfred?

There was no time to worry about that any longer, since Germany took a turn around the corner and lead them to a room normally heavily locked.

As they followed him inside, they caught a glimpse of a few nations, most of them having their eyes locked on America. The feeling growing into his throat, he took place right next to his older brother.

They had been led in some sort of surveillance room. The wall they were facing was covered with small television, each displaying a difference place in and outside the building they were currently in. Germany brought their attention to a specific one somewhere in the middle right part of the wall. It was actually the only one that was not displaying any footing and was completely grey.

«This camera was the one to record the murder before being destroyed. Now, please look carefully. » Germany said before pressing a button on the control board next to him.

The screen then showed the image of a concrete walkway and a part of the street just next to the building itself. In the bottom of the screen was a series of number ending with the time the images were recorded.

At first, there was nothing out of the ordinary. From times to times, a car would be briefly shown in the corner of the screen. However, as midnight approached, someone walked into the field of vision of the device.

He was instantly recognized: Afghanistan. The tan man was looking a bit nervous and was glancing at his surrounding every once in a while. Clearly, he was waiting for something and, perhaps, was hoping not to be seen. Too bad he had unknowingly walked into the area covered by the camera.

The digital numbers showed midnight.

All the nations saw Afghanistan jumped in surprise and stared at something the camera was not showing. It seemed as if the man forgot his previous attitude and put up a façade of strength. His back straight as Germany, he seemed to ask something. Unfortunately, no sound had reached the camera.

«I can read on his lips. » Germany declared. «Right now, he asked for someone's identity. »

Every spectator stared intensively at the screen as a person covered from head to toes with black clothes slowly made his way toward Afghanistan.

However, he stopped a few steps away from him and his future victim continued with its bravado. A few more words seemed to be exchanged and the nation visibly relaxed.

«Are you… ? » Germany obligated his fellow nations.

Afghanistan seemed hesitant. He looked as if he was still expecting someone. For what was calculated as twelve seconds, it looked like neither of the persons displayed talked.

«What about the… ?» his lips formed until it seemed like he was interrupted. «The o… »

A look of pure shock passed on the nation's eyes as he realized something very wrong.

«You… » he began, pointing an accusing finger toward the person in black.

Alfred froze. Everyone that knew him did.

Just then, just as Afghanistan was angrily staring at the one that tricked him, he bent back his head and shook slightly as if laughing. Even worse, he made a simple hand gesture of pointing toward himself with his thumb.

An exact replica of the way Alfred laughed when he was rambling about being a Hero.

The American's face was a pale green at this point.

On the screen, the murderer made his move. Dreadfully fast, he jumped on the tan nation and, without ceremony, planted a knife in his throat.

That was it. Just like that, a nation had been killed. It sent cold sweat running down their spines.

Slowly, the killer stood up and was about to leave when he seemed hit by a revelation. Suddenly a lot less confident, he turned swiftly toward the camera and threw his knife in it.

The image returned to being a bland grey screen. However, it had shown everything it had to.

There was a nation killer on the loose and the signs were pointing toward America.


	3. You're putting a LEASH on the Hero!

Alfred had reached a new level of irritation. He was not sure exactly how to qualify what he was feeling, but it certainly wasn't something he'd be eager to get a taste of again. Handcuffing the Hero to another nation during the world meetings was really making him angry.

Then again, considering how it all started, it could have been a lot worse.

* * *

Frankly, at first, he was really speechless when he saw the footage. That really looked like the way he laughed after saying he was the Hero (Hey, the Hero has to practice his pose to look good when fighting the villain, everyone knows that!) and making everyone awe around him.

From the looks of the others, they were thinking among the same lines, failing to see the one thing that really mattered: he was the _Hero_ and _heroes_ don't _kill_ people!

«Can you explain what we've just seen, America? » Germany asked, obviously careful of the North American's reaction.

«Yes, I can, you stupid Nazi! I did not leave my house until Mattie picked me up! » Alfred stood up, annoyed. This got even worse when a few nations whispered among themselves, some of them asking who was this «Mattie» he was speaking of. «My little brother, Canada! He picked me up after you called him! Whoever that is, it's someone pretending to be me! »

At the declaration, Germany frowned. Following his example, many others silently expressed their concern. Of a dissonant serenity, Russia smiled in his own childish, cruel, manner. To say it infuriated Alfred was an understatement.

«What the hell, you damn commie bastard! »

«Oh, I was just thinking how nice it would be to finally see you imprisoned. Don't you agree? » He said cheerfully. The tall man then turned to a shaky Latvia and put a hand on his head, much to the dismay of the small, shaking, nation. «You think so too, Latvia, Da? »

«O-o-o-of course, Mister Russia! » the poor nation shrieked.

«See, Amerika? Even little Latvia here thinks you're going to be judged for your crimes.» the Russian continued, pushing Alfred's button further and further.

«You damn commie! » he lunged at Russia without a second thought.

Horrified, most nations backed away to avoid getting caught up in the fight between the superpowers. If they were to take a hit, it would take them quite a long time to forget, let alone recover. For as much as they could hate them, they had to admit that America and Russia had the muscles to back their claims.

With that in mind, it came as quite a surprise to them when three nations jumped in to separate the fighters.

«Sister? » Russia muttered, paralyzed by the shock.

«Let me go, you guys! I'm gonna rip off that damn smile off his face! » Alfred snarled at Matthew and Jack.

Had they not combined their strength, they probably wouldn't have been to hold him in place.

«Al, calm down! This is not the time to attack Russia! » Matthew urged as he struggled to keep his brother in place.

«He's right, mate! Think about it! » Jack pleaded. «You're being accused of murder! You can't start picking fight and threaten people! »

Less than a meter away, Russia was trying to restrain himself from pounding the American into the ground. It was not strength that held him back; it was his love for his older sister, Ukraine, who was begging him to stop fighting.

«Brother, please, you promised not to. »

«Si-sister… » Russia hesitated, in a display that made many widen their eyes.

Sure, they knew he loved his sisters - Russia had claimed that many times -, but there was something unsettling with seeing the cold nation stop to prevent hurting someone's feelings. Whispering something that only her brother could hear, Russia visibly relaxed and let her hug him properly.

Not very touched by the siblings' love, England decided it was time someone knocked some sense into Alfred before he caused a diplomatic incident AND put himself in huge trouble.

Honestly, no matter what he would later say, Alfred did not see it coming. From the corner of his eyes, he did notice England approaching, but, just as he was turning to the older nation with the clear intent to annoy him, he felt a burning sensation on his right cheek.

He had just been slapped.

«Ouch, Iggy, what the heck? »

In front of most of the world's nations! There was no way a Hero could let it slide! No, he had to give the Englishman a piece of his mind.

«Shut up, you bloody fool! » he was cut before even opening his mouth.

Huh?

«It seems that someone needs to break it down to you, clear and simple. You are accused of killing another nation, you are suspected of being a murderer. No one cares about you saying you're the Hero or some sort of nonsense like this. Experts will be looking for evidence and only this kind of things will be taken into account when it will be time to judge you. This is not like those times you played pranks and tried to hide from me that you were the culprit. If you are declared guilty, you may be sentenced to death! »

«D-death? » Alfred repeated, for once unable to think of a comeback.

«Yes, death or perhaps reduced to the state of little more than a slave to one of us, which, considering your strength, would most likely end up being Russia. » Arthur nodded, pushing the final nail into Alfred's coffin.

«No way am I ever going to serve that commie bastard! I'll sooner die than submit to him! » the American exploded, not able to even begin to imagine that situation.

«Then, you little brat, you need to start thinking about what is going on and stop blathering that stupid «heroism» of yours. If things take a turn for the worst, you're going to be the one to fall. »

Alfred was finally silent and with him, the rest of the nations following his example.

«Thank you England, it seems that we will be able to get somewhere after all. » Germany said in an appreciative tone toward the one that managed to get America to listen. He supposed that went with bringing up the boy, though this result was not commonly achieved. Well, it was not his place to judge, especially after America stopped ranting about «heroic stuff». Shrugging off the thought, he continued. «Now, we need to decide on which course of action to follow concerning America. »

«I suggest putting him in jail. » Russia instantly proposed, his childish grin making others shiver.

This remark earned a death glare from Alfred, but he was being surprisingly cooperative and didn't say anything.

Fortunately, Jack voiced his friend's complaints.

«Hey! You can't lock up Alfred while you are being his guests. You don't have any proof that he's the killer. You just say that because of a gesture that person did and associated it with Alfred, but, hey, if everyone knows about it, why couldn't it be framing? »

His question brought a few looks of fear among the nations. This was too sinister for some of them. Germany, following his habit for an orderly meeting, tried to brought back order but found himself a bit too busy comforting a now crying Italy. The poor German had to actively cover up Feliciano's frightened «Doitsu! » and some more… intimate nicknames that he certainly didn't want his fellow nations to hear about. Taking his place, Arthur stepped in.

«It is a possibility, Jack, but we cannot simply ignore this issue. A sound investigation will give us all the answers we need. However, in the meantime, we must decide on a way to ensure everyone's safety and, seeing as Alfred is the primary suspect in this affair, restrain him one way or another. »

«Say what? » Alfred finally recovered his voice. «No way I'm letting anyone restrain me! »

«You are not given a choice in that regard, Alfred. If you refuse to comply, we will have no choice but to take that into consideration during the investigations. You are already a very serious candidate for that crime; do not make it even more likely. »

It was no use, no one wanted to understand how much of an unfair decision that was for the Hero. Completely unfair, so unfair that he might… No, there was no way was he going to pout! Instead it was the totally heroic and cool disapproving bouncy lips that were on his face.

«Geez, Alfred… » Matthew whispered to his brother. «Don't pout like a child. I think I see where Arthur is going with his little speech. »

Oh no he didn't! And what did he mean?

«I suggest that we put someone in charge of America until the end of the investigations. America would have to follow that nation around to make sure he doesn't want trouble and to prove his innocence at the same time. » the gentleman declared. «Whichever nation it would be, it would be responsible of America's behaviour while under his or her charge. »

That was the one thing not to say. Agreeing to watch over a superpower is one thing, agreeing to become responsible for _America's_ antics was a completely different one. Understandably, there was no rush of volunteers for that task.

Just then, Matthew smiled to Alfred and the Hero suddenly understood why he should not protest that much. Having his brother as a babysitter was not exactly his long term dream, but he could live with it, especially when taking into considerations the other options.

«Hum… England? I'd like to pr…» The Canadian started only to be cut by someone else.

«We should ask Russia to keep an eye on him. » Iceland suggested, his voice cold with a certain disdain.

Oh dear Ronald McDonald, no! If he had to be under the commie's control… he'd rather jump off his sweet Lady Liberty's crown.

The damn commie was already grinning in victory. If only he could find a way to tear him apart without being noticed…

«Are you nuts? » came the voice of salvation in the person of Denmark. «You're saying we should make America and Russia sty together for an extended period of time! That's the shortcut to World War III! »

God bless Denmark… and America, he deserved it for tolerating so much accusations toward his integrity.

«He's the only one strong enough to stop America if he really is the murderer though. » Sweden reminded.

Alfred really was lucky that glares couldn't kill or he'd have become a murderer after all. For the mean time, he was stuck silently asking himself why he never bothered to learn any of Iggy's spells. There might have been a curse he could have used in this.

«And what if America's guilty, eh? You wanna take the risk of giving _motherfucking_ Russia the control of his lands? » Prussia snarled with deep hatred, successfully making his brother wondering how he got wind of all this and how he managed to sneak in the room. As much as he hated to admit it, East certainly was resourceful and he made a pretty good point.

«Then who should we ask? » Hungary wondered. «There's not many candidates. We should designate someone that could stop him or at least slow him down until helps arrive. A male with a bondage fetish would be nice too. »

Okay, that last part sent Alfred images he'd never thought he imagined. Seriously, him, the Hero, being placed under the care of a guy with a bondage fetish? That was stupid bull crap!

«Note to self. » he added mentally. «Stay away from that girl's invitation to come over for a mature party, especially those that ask to bring Matthew with him… EW! »

«Hum… that's what I was saying before. I'm strong enough to hold Alfred and I don't mind bei… » The quiet North American tried once more.

«What about you Arthur? You were the one that brought up America. Surely you could hold him in place if necessary. » Spain asked, not realising he had made Matthew blushed and stop. What he did realised was that England was now blushing as much as Romano when he gently put his arm around the Italian's neck.

«O-of course I could! » Arthur fluttered, in complete denial and a bit angry that someone would suggest otherwise. The loud snort made from Alfred and Jack, plus Matthew covering his mouth to hide his smile, turned that into fully blown anger.

«Sure, you could, Iggy… In your dreams! » Alfred could not help but taunt.

«You arrogant little prat! Show some respect! »

«Yeah, yeah, Iggy. » he brushed off the comment with a hand wave. «I'm gonna do that later, 'kay? Let's focus on the situation at hand. We need someone to escort the heroic me. »

«Just who should we trust with that task? » China jumped in. «So far no suggestions have given any tangible results, aru. » Failing to see that Matthew had tried to speak up once more.

Perhaps if he screamed…

«I would not mind looking after America-san. » Japan said, more of a whisper than anything. For some reason only he knew (or so he naively thought), he refused to look directly at his American friend and preferred to stare at the ground.

«Bro, what are you blushing for? » Korea instantly remarked while passing an arm around his neck, causing Hungary to quietly snap a picture of the two.

«I-I failed to see what you are talking about, Yonsoo-neesan. » Japan hissed, which, surprisingly, sounded to have been done with a lot of self-control.

He was however saved from giving a more satisfying answer when Vietnam grabbed Korea by the collar and made him sit on the ground «as a way to make him reflect on his actions», as she put it.

«Oh come on! We're getting nowhere with this! » Jack snapped. «I happen to know just the guy that can put the leash on Alfred! »

Ignoring said Alfred's offended look, Jack winked at Matthew. Hey, if his shy kind-of-brother's voice was buried by the others, he'd give him his.

«Oh yeah! You are strong too, Australia! » Feliciano commented with his usual happiness. The Aussie blinked in surprise.

Before he had the chance to correct the Italian, a whisper of approbation spread like wildfire among the nations. They knew he was strong, albeit not on the level of Russia or America, but he had already shown that he could hold back the latter for a few moments, so that requirement was fulfilled. Unlike Russia, he was known for getting along with America quite well. He was the perfect choice!

A unanimous (Ivan didn't count and Kiku was somewhat relieved that he did not have to stay so close to Alfred all the time) consent then declared Jack the one to look after Alfred until the end of the investigation.

Dumfounded, Jack looked at Alfred, who was honestly pleased with the judgement, and at Matthew, who was shaking a little. Sorry to have betrayed him without meaning it, he walked to the Canadian, only to realize that the young nation was holding back a desire to laugh.

«Matt? » The Aussie asked, raising one of his eyebrows in confusion.

With what was a really poorly attempt to hide his hilarity, Matthew finally looked at Jack in the eyes.

«Good luck dealing with Alfred when he's wearing a leash, Jack. Thank God everything worked out as I planned. » With that, Matthew left the room with the majority of the other nations while his brothers were being handcuffed.

Leaving them both with their jaw gaping was one of the most satisfying thing he had done in a while. He had not quite forgiven them for their disastrous trip to Alfred's biggest national park, but now… well, he was ready to finally let it go.

«B-Bloody hell what that? » Jack yelled, earning a «Language, my boy. » from a passing England.

«That wasn't Mattie! He's been abducted by aliens and replaced with a replica! Tony had promised me that he wouldn't! » Alfred muttered with his eyes wide.

«…Alfred? » Jack asked with an eye twitching.

«Huh… yeah? »

«Remind me, why do people think Canadians are nice again? »

Suddenly, Alfred wasn't so sure anymore.

* * *

So, yeah, being handcuffed to Jack wasn't as bad as what could have happened. The worst being handcuffed to the damn commie bastard, but the others had been wise enough not to trigger another war.

Now, if only Mattie –which was losing his position as a side-kick after that comment- hadn't laughed at them both, Alfred would have been able to listen instead of muttering sentences about how ungrateful his bro was to him.

Eventually though, Jack had snapped out of his own anger at being tricked and elbowed Alfred hard enough to make him turn his head in his direction.

«Listen up. Germany said we'd now talk about the murder, mate, so listen! » Jack whispered a bit harsher than intended.

Before Alfred had the chance to reply, Germany cleared his throat to talk.

«We will now move to the latest point in our agenda: Afghanistan's death. »

«Not much of a mystery there… » Cuba muttered under his breath, earning a glare from Germany and America, plus a sight from Canada.

«Restrain from saying such things from now on. Personal opinions do not matter here. Remember that. Anyway, as I was going to say before being interrupted, we must discuss the potential damage this might bring on an international level. China, in regards to your knowledge and witnessing of such events before, would you please remind us of the effects of a nation's death over its country's well-being? »

«If I must, but I shall insist on the fact that I do not like to think about those sorts of things more than necessary, aru. »

«I think we all agree on how essential this is, China. » England said as he tapped the desk in impatience.

«Where should I start? Hum… let's see… Ah, I know! First of all, a nation's death normally occurs when the nationalism and the cultural identity of its members fade away. Such a thing generally happens when a country is destroyed, dissolved or simply taken over. » Yao started, pointing out these morbid facts in a state of enervating calm. For many, this subject was a delicate part of their history that they didn't want to be reminded of. « Similarly, if a nation dies on its own, disregarding its country's state of affairs, then the cause of a nation's death become one of the results. »

Wow, headache. Seriously, why couldn't Yao speak in simple terms for once? Unless that was his revenge for all the money he owned him. The simple thought floated in Alfred's for a moment. Revenge? What if that was what this thing was all about? Someone was framing him, that made no doubt, but perhaps it was not just to escape justice, maybe it was to push the Hero into a corner!

«However, I have also observed many other problems that arose from something like a nation's death. » the four-thousand years old nation continued. «The government suddenly loses a lot of its cohesion, making its structure shaky and prone to change. The military forces will lose a lot of its strength. The population also becomes really agitated, riots will soon erupt and revolutions will come with them; there is no doubt about that. I think the fallen nation's territory might become dangerously unstable. »

A loud noise startled them all. Matthew Williams, the nation of Canada, had risen up from his seat and hit the desk with both his hands.

«I propose that we create a peacekeeping mission in Afghanistan to regulate those problems and prevent any invasion by military strength! » he shouted, to the utmost surprise of the few that recognize him.

«Who is that? » was the first thing most said in response to the outburst.

«CA-NA-DA! I'm the second largest country in the world and America's younger brother! And that's beside the point! What is important is that we need to do something fast before anyone gets hurt! » Matthew replied, passionate.

«In that case, CA-NA-DA, you should try to get your brother to change his troops' mission in there. » the tan woman that was India interjected sourly. For some reason, she never seemed to like either of the North American brothers. «Besides, I didn't remember that you cared so much about peacekeeping, you know, with all those wars you supported your brother in, not to mention the few soldiers you sent to the missions actually dedicated to peacekeeping. I've sent forty times the amount of soldier you did. Anything to say for yourself? »

Matthew seemed to have lost his voice. Unable to find an answer, he stood there, his mouth wide open, silently staring at India. Slowly, the poor Canadian fell down on his chair, his legs no longer supporting him. His face became a blank mask of dull emotions and the other countries quickly lost sight of him.

For a second, Alfred almost did the same, but his inner Hero prevented that. Angry at the damn nation for saying such cruel things to his little brother, he stood up, ready to give her a piece of his mind she would not forget anytime soon. There, all he needed was to take a deep breath and start a rant she would not…

«I agree with… him. » England suddenly said, prompting a surprised gasped from the nations and effectively diverting their attention from America. Said North American felt a yank on the handcuffed linking him to Australia.

«Sit down! » Jack hissed.

Going against an impulse, he obeyed. Alfred would much rather be standing up for his brother, but there was just something about Jack's eyes that made him wary. As soon as he was within reach, Jack leaned in and whispered into his ears.

«England just stopped you from putting yourself in deep trouble! Don't make his efforts vain! » The Aussie scolded, looking nervous.

Gravely, he nodded, but he could not shake off that cold sensation tightening his throat. What about Mattie's efforts?

* * *

The meeting ended soon after that, but, honestly, Alfred could not really remember much after England's intervention. The entire time, he wished he could just go over to his brother's side and talk to him. That's something a Hero should have done, not just hide in plain sight until all danger was gone. He… he just felt so totally the opposite of heroic. Which one was it? Cowardly? Mean? Stupid?

Maybe «all of them» was the most fitting answer.

When Germany announced that they were done for the day, Alfred's first thought was to go after Matthew, but he barely managed to catch a glimpse of the Canadian before he disappeared within the crowd of nations.

Now what? He wasn't sure what to do anymore. He stood there, immobile, while Jack was trying to figure out what was going in his head.

«America-san… » was the only thing Japan managed to say, passing him by with Korea, who was nagging Vietnam about what was wrong with her today.

«Kiku? » Alfred said, blinking to return to the present.

Too late, his friend had already been dragged away by Yao and the others. It was just Alfred and Jack now.

«We need a little talk, Alfred. »

…and England.


	4. Wowowowow! Iggy! How can you say that!

He spotted his friend just as he left the room in which the meeting had been held. Frankly, it was quite easy when his friend was a bit taller than most and had white hair.

«Gilbert! » Matthew called, trying to get the albino's attention.

«Birdie? » he said, a bit surprised. He waited for his friend to get to him.

«I didn't see you at the meeting. I thought you'd try to sneak in. » The Canadian explained, earning a frown from the ex-nation, Prussia.

«I TRIED, but West is a total joykiller. After my awesome ninja self snuck in the surveillance room, he tightened the security in the building and I couldn't get in. Well, without attacking the guards that is, but I didn't felt like doing that. »

«So noble of you, Gilbert. » Matthew rolled his eyes in contempt. Why did he have a best friend that sounded just like his brother?

«You bet! So, how boring was the meeting? » Gilbert asked, noticing the strange expression on his friend's face.

«I thought it was a bit… interesting. » His eyes went to the ground. «China explained what was the most likely to happen because of Afghanistan's death. »

«Which is? »

«Well, mostly it was about the big instability that was bound to happen. We voted on a motion to assure the stability of the country until things returned to normal. » There was no need for Gilbert to see his face to know that Matthew was deeply affected by what had happened.

«Matthew… » he whispered, concerned.

«Oh, there was also some other things that were pretty important. » The Canadian's head shot up a bit too fast to seem natural. «For example, he said that a nation cannot die at the hands of a normal human. The wounds, no matter how severe, would heal up with time. Also, if nothing too drastic in Afghanistan, then he might get reincarnated one day. »

Gilbert put his arm on Matthew's shoulder, causing the poor guy to freeze. The albino's eyes felt like they were piercing right through his mask.

«You always sucked when it came to lying or being sneaky, Birdie. Why don't you just tell my awesome self the truth? »

Maple, even the way they grinned was somewhat similar. To think that he used to have a crush on that guy… thinking about it under this angle suddenly sounded _so_ messed up…

«Birdie? Why are you turning green? » Prussia asked, completely confused. One second he looked whiter than a mime, the other he looked greener than a bush. Had he taken a lesson in camouflage with a chameleon or something?

«Oh! Hum… » Matthew returned to the conversation. Now, to think of a convincing reason… «It's just that I ate too many pancakes before the meeting. »

«Pancakes… you say that YOU, Matthew Williams, the guy that turned pancakes into the greatest dish ever, ate too many pancakes? » the albino repeated, an eyebrow raised at the improbable explanation.

«…with maple syrup… lots of it… » the Canadian added lamely, blushing more and more by the second. Perhaps if he attained a red of unprecedented intensity he could escape Gilbert for some reason…

Not very likely.

Maple! Why did his friend liked to see him blushing like that so much? It was like that every time Matthew had struggled to come up with a believable lie. He'd say something extremely unlikely, Gilbert would instantly notice the weird things in the lie, he would blush until there was no blood in his body other than in his face and he'd wait for Gilbert to press the issue until he gave in.

«Birdie… »

Here it comes…

«You've gotta make me that many pancakes! » Prussia loudly exclaimed, completely taking Matthew by surprise.

«Eh? » the Canadian muttered, eying his now enthusiastic friend with caution.

«Canada got sick on pancakes. I've got to eat that much and be just fine… no, I've got to eat more and be top shape! It'll be another display of my awesomeness! »

Rolling his eyes, he started walking again, followed by an overly excited Prussia. Without looking carefully, it was impossible to notice Matthew's secretly pleased expression, nor the glitter of worry in Gilbert's eyes.

* * *

«Iggy? What do you want? »

For a moment, England stayed silent, carefully eying two of the nations he raised like a father. His eyes stone hard, he merely observed Alfred's behaviour, trying to catch something out of the ordinary.

«Alfred, we need to talk now. »

«Yeah, I got that the first time, old man. No need to repeat yourself. » America puffed, rolling his eyes.

The fact that Arthur didn't even flinch tipped them off that it was a situation of the utmost serious.

«This is not the time, Alfred. I'm worried about how this whole mess might unfold. »

«Aw, come on, Iggy! I'm the Hero, it's not like anything bad could really happen. » the American shrugged it off. «I mean, sure, they all think that I did it, everyone always blame the good guy first, but, hey, I'll pull through. »

«And how do you plan that? » Arthur snapped.

Alfred honestly seemed taken aback by the question, as if he hadn't even considered it. Under both Australia's and England's stunned gaze, he stroke his chin in a pensive gesture.

«I don't know. I'll think of something later. » And just with that, he gave them a demonstration of his characteristic «Hero laugh».

The images of the killer superposed themselves with Alfred's silhouette in their minds, matching to the last detail.

A shiver run down their spine. It… there was no way it could be true… right?

For a moment, Jack shot a worried look at the chain that was linking him to Alfred. Suddenly, it didn't appear to him like it was made to prevent _America_ from escaping anymore…

«You guys are way too worried. I'm telling you it'll be alright. » the North American said, flashing them his famous grin. After all, what better way to comfort others than showing them your shiny teeth?

«B-Bloody yank! » Arthur stuttered, to his great embarrassment. Him? Afraid of the stupid American? That was just a bad joke, no matter what France or Whales would say. «It won't be alright! What part of being suspected of murdering someone do you not understand? » At this point, the older nation really look just about ready to lunge at America and forcefully make the idea enter the empty void that was his brain.

Alright, just like all the heroes out there, he was a patient man. However, there were some limits that Iggy was about to cross. Annoyed like rarely before, he glared at the man who raised him.

«I'm Alfred F. Jones, the United States of America. You're all just guests in my territory; don't even suggest that someone can stand up to me here. » he said, his voice low enough to make them shiver.

«Alfred… » Jack whispered, feeling a storm coming.

Boy was he right.

«ENOUGH! This is not a game, you fool! No one can stand up to you? You got a broken nose the last time you faced Russia! And we're not talking about facing one person, if you're found guilty, _everyone_ will work together to put you into custody! » Arthur shouted, unable to contain his anger anymore. How hard-headed could the foolish boy be? At this point, it was pure denial. How to make someone who closes his eyes see the light?

Both nations stared at each other, an oppressive silence taking place between them.

Until England decided to break it.

«Alfred, I want you to tell me why you did it. » he said, his voice perfectly neutral.

Jack gasped. What did he just say? Did… did he seriously asked how Alfred had killed Afghanistan?

He felt a strong tension on his wrists, where the handcuff was linking him to Alfred. Now, he was no coward, but he'd much rather close his eyes than see the guy he considered kind of like a brother jump at the man who brought them up. Unfortunately, thanks to a certain _someone_ who's mere name was making him shake up in indignation for the moment, he was supposed to deal with it.

Too bad Alfred was way too angry to give Jack enough time to prepare.

Arthur knew what was coming, but still couldn't do anything in time to protect himself. He was slammed to the ground with strength out of this world. Stars danced in his field of vision as the nation he brought up was screaming at him.

«I DID NOT KILL AFGHANISTAN! I'M NOT A MURDERER! » The North American yelled at the top of his lungs. However, that much was not impressive enough to make England worry, his eyes however…

It was something dark. The gentleman had banished those memories from his mind for as long as he could remember. He had mostly succeeded if one excluded the times he indulged into his drinking habits.

How long had it been since England had seen America's «darkness» ?

For a person as cheerful as him, there certainly was something equally terrifying beneath all this joyful demeanour. No nations was truly white or black, there was a middle ground that they were sharing.

Wartime was usually when the «black» in them was revealed. Surely enough, it was when they faced each other in war that England had to deal with his former colony's darkness.

And here it was, coming back at a simple suggestion. One could only wonder…

«I want you to tell me the truth, Alfred. » England said.

Something snapped. For as evident as it was, they might as well have heard a loud cracking noise.

Alfred raised his fist, preparing to beat the crap out of the Englishman.

His arms was twisted behind his back in a manner that he would not have expected. Since when was Australia that skilled with a handcuffed hand?

«Stop. Now. » Jack whispered, gritting his teeth under the effort he was giving to maintain America in place.

There was only anger inside him. How he managed to push it all aside to calm down, he did not know.

At the reaction, Australia let out an audible sigh of relief and let go, freeing his friend.

Without a single word, Alfred stood up and left the room, almost dragging the Aussie with him and giving the Englishman the time to think about it all.

This was not over yet, he swore. Oh no, he was done being a polite, nice guy.

With a voice shaking of anger, he declared:

«I'm going to prove to everyone my innocence! I'm going to catch the moron that chose to frame Alfred F. Jones for murder! »

Well, perhaps it was pride that allowed him to shake off his anger. He was going to do it. He'd find the murderer himself and make him pay properly for what he had done.

* * *

She was alone in her room. Yonsoo was being as clingy as ever, wanting everyone to stay together all the time. However, he probably wouldn't dare going against her order to leave him alone tonight. After all, there was a saying in her family: «What Vietnam says, goes. » Not that accurate outside of family reunion, but it gave a good idea to outsiders as to her status as the mature and not-to-be-upset one.

It was for an entirely different reason that she had requested to be left alone tonight.

If she closed her eyes, all Vietnam saw was his face, over and over again. She could feel her face reddening slightly as America's image kept flashing before her eyes.

It was as much love as it was hatred. Or at least, it used to be a perfect equilibrium between the two. Now… there was no doubt that one emotion had completely eclipsed the other.

Deep within her thoughts, she almost missed the ringtone she had recently chosen for her cellphone.

Vietnam shot a worried look at the object and opened it.

The caller's number was not displayed.

«Hello? »


	5. This doesn't sound Heroic at all!

_«Hey! You! » he had called her._

_Wordlessly, she had turned around, melancholic. She had never met the owner of the voice, but she knew who had brought him up nonetheless. Listening to France usually ended up with you knowing too much on certain persons. She had never been able to maintain a completely straight face whenever she faced England since France had spoken to her. And here she was, facing the boy England had brought up, cared for until his revolution. _

_How the boy had turned out afterward, she did not know, or care for that matters. What she did care about was what he wanted with her. _

_Everyone wanted someone out of her. There had been none to come selflessly, even her brothers and sisters had reason to come see her. Why would this nation be different from all the others? _

_«Yes? » Vietnam responded, sounding as neutral as she could. Showing your weaknesses was one of the worst mistakes when you faced another nation. You were either strong (or had strong allies of course) or you were a slave waiting for a new master. _

_«You're Vietnam, right?» the young man had asked, his curiosity evident in his eager tone. _

_«I am. » she replied, wary of the energetic nation. _

_It was then that he did something really unusual, for her at the very least. America, aka one of the growing powers, span on himself, turning his back on her. _

_«Finally, my long quest has given fruits. I have found the object of my desires. » He whispered in a theatrical manner._

_At that, despite her rational telling her to be even more careful, Vietnam blushed ever so slightly. _

_Taking her by surprise, he span once more, and, facing her, grinned so widely she was worried for the sake of his cheeks. _

_«Fear not, fair maiden. Your Hero has arrived! » he declared, loudly, a hand pointing toward his chest._

_What? _

_To be perfectly honest, she completely lost the rest of his introduction (which more than once involved a comment about kicking giant caterpillars and a childish laugh). Her mind was trying to connect this strange young man with the powerful nation that she had heard about. _

_Well, one more proof rumours were not to be trusted._

_As he started going on his epic, totally heroic and awesome (Had Prussia reincarnated himself in this young nation? ) trip to her place, she timidly interrupted him._

_«Hum… why are you here? » _

_He looked struck by lightning._

_«Aren't you a lady in distress? » _

_«No… » It was true. She was not that miserable. She'd easily overcome her trials, alone at that. It was no problem, she had learned fast to do it… or pay the price. «What gave you that idea?»_

_«France. »_

_Of course._

_«I was talking my extremely cool heroic antics, when Iggy started groaning – he's totally jealous of my supreme awesomeness – and told me to bugger off with my idiocy. Just when I was about to unleash a can of ass-whooping on him, France grabbed me by the shoulders while being all touchy-touchy – which I hate, seriously, what's his deal? – and said that Iggy was way too strict with a young hero like me. Then, he smiled and said he knew a lady in distress. » _

_Two things crossed Vietnam's mind. First, she had not understood half of what he said, he was talking just like he was acting: hyperactively. Second, where did he find the AIR to say all that in one shot? _

_«So… » she started. It was always good to give eccentrics the impression that you cared about their nonsenses. «France is the one that said I was in distress? Sorry to disappoint you, but I'm not. » _

_«But… » a flash of deception passed in his eyes as he recalled the events. «France told me that you were extremely tensed lately and that, perhaps, you needed some help from a strong young man. »_

_«He… he did? » Vietnam muttered, surprised that the Frenchman still cared for her well-being. _

_«Yeah, though he did that weird eyebrows wave when he said «help» and «strong». » Alfred pondered, trying to put two and two together._

_Never mind that and, dear forehead, meet right hand. Right hand's purpose will be to express my annoyance and hide the furious blush that is crawling on my face. I hope you two will be good friends from now on._

_«What? » the North American asked, confused at her sudden exasperation._

_«Nothing. France just made a mistake. I'm not the one you're looking for. » There, now that he no longer had an excuse, he'd just show his true colours already. _

_«But… if you don't need my help… how can I be the Hero? » the young nation whined. _

_She felt her bitterness die in her throat. That… was an act, right? He was just playing with her. There's no way he truly cared like he was telling. _

_Everyone for himself is the truth of nations. _

_«Geez, stupid Francis. I wanted to save people and there he goes making me waste my time! Does he not think about all the poor innocents that needs my heroism? » America was clearly getting angry now. _

_Was it… possible? Could someone that nice… still exist? _

_«You… » she started, her voice shaking under the pressure. He stared at her and she felt those ocean blue eyes pierce through her outer shell. He was being honest… she had to do the same. «Would you like to stay for a while? » _

_This time, when he showed her his typical «Heroic smile», she felt compelled to do the same…_

_As they walked together to Vietnam's house, she tried to calm down the beatings of her frantic heart. _

* * *

«Alfred? » Jack attempted, careful of the others reaction.

«What? » He snapped, visibly quite angry. He was NOT going to take it! Not from Iggy!

«Where are you going, mate? » the Aussie asked, pointing in front of them, namely the door that lead outside of the building.

«Back at my place of course! In my secret bunker, I'll be able to plan my revenge against that damn killer and prove everyone who is the HERO! »

«Huh… that's not a good idea. »

«Huh? Of course it is. All my hero stuff is there! »

«Do you really think that the most considerate thing to do would be to isolate yourself when they're looking for a murderer? What if he goes against you? » Jack argued, conscious that this was not what he needed to say to get Alfred to listen, but, hey, it wouldn't hurt to try.

«Ah, as if that coward had any chance against me! After all, I'm the Hero! » the North American declared, once more, giving Jack an headache the likes of which he had never felt before.

Well, if it was to avoid having this stuff repeated over and over again, the tan man could certainly forgive Matthew for wanting a way out of this. Only, he sure as heck wouldn't considering HE was the one stuck with Alfred now.

«…How do you intend to get to your place? I'm certainly not walking all the way there. » he tried again. Alfred wasn't impermeable to logic; he was just obsessed with the idea that he was the Hero that the world needed.

«Ah, we can just take your Jeep. »

«I don't know if you noticed, but we're handcuffed, not to mention the fact that my left hand is linked to your right one, which means I can't sit in the driver's seat. » he explained, just as he realized what he said – and the reason Alfred was grinning again.

No. Plain, simple, complete, no.

«Guess that means I have to be the one driving. » he smiled. «It's only fitting, don't you think? »

«Never! You hear me? NEVER! » Jack shouted at the top of his lungs.

«Why not? » he said in a way that could be interpreted as whining by novices, but it was totally not that.

«You, plus my car, equals no more car. You. Are. Not. Driving. My. Jeep. Understood? »

«Come on! When have I ever proven myself to be a bad driver? » Alfred dared his close friend to find an occasion it happened.

«Last week. » Jack replied instantly, not even bothering with indignation. «You totaled Matt's old truck when driving us to a MacDonald. »

«It doesn't count! His truck is old and that guy had totally cut me off. What else was I supposed to do? »

«Forget it like Matt asked you to? »

«Well, that was just one time. » Alfred said with a condescending tone. «Name one person who never made a single mistake. »

«I can't find any, but… I happen to recall a certain black Jeep with flames stripes I had two years ago. It mysteriously vanished when I lent it to you in a moment of stupidity. » The Aussie ironically told, putting his free hand on his hip while facing Alfred.

«I told you I saw a Rainbow Snake down that river! I had to try to get it! »

«First of all, Arthur should have never told you about that legend. » The poor nation sighed. «Second, you didn't have to jump in the river with my Jeep! »

«Fine! We'll walk, you big baby… » The North American conceded, already starting to walk.

«This way, Alfred. » Jack yanked on the chain, getting his friend's attention.

«Huh? But that's not the way to my place. »

«That's the way to the hotel the others are all staying at. » The Aussie stated, mentally prepared to fight another long battle.

«What? »

«You heard me. You're in big trouble, your house is way too far to simply walk there, deliberately avoiding people is not the best way to start an investigation, not to mention that it will become really suspicious if you refuse to stay there and something happens. » Jack's tone left no place for opposition. No matter how much Alfred would protest he would…

«Okay. »

Well, _that_ certainly wasn't what he was expecting.

«Excuse me? »

«You're right. I should start looking for clues in people's behaviour as soon as possible, as the crime is still fresh in their mind. Let's go. »

Before Jack had the time to voice any of his surprise anymore, Alfred's cellphone loudly cut him off.

Looking at the caller's number, the Hero bit his lips, earning a shocked gasp from his friend. Who could bring such a face on the North American simply with a phone call?

«You… you're not going to answer? » he said when Alfred looked like he would let it ring.

«No, of course, I can't turn _her_ down. You know, she's the only woman in the world that I have to obey no matter what. »

«You got married? »

«What? How did you get that idea? » Alfred said, looking at Jack like he had said something utterly ridiculous out of context.

The Aussie stuttered, his face on fire. Getting that look from _Alfred_, from America? That stung like hell…

Ignoring him, the North American nation put his phone to his ear and said:

«Hello, Miss Anderson. »

«_Alfred, I've been expecting your call. _» Well, crap! She was speaking with her authoritative, disappointed voice. He was screwed.

«I… » he started.

«_Do I need to remind you that I am your boss? _»

«No, Ma'am. » Alfred whispered, obedient just like it was proper, for it was his duty to obey his president.

«_Then why is it that I've waited a whole day to receive a phone call that never came? _»

«Come on, I was imprisoned last night! »

«_But I received a report saying you were allowed to go out under the surveillance of Australia. Did he order you not to call me? _» her voice was that of an inquisitor, severe and lacking any sense of compassion. She wanted answers and nothing else.

«Well, no, but…»

«_In that case, I shall remind you of something Alfred. It is my job to make up for the last economic crisis you've brought upon the world. After three years of countless sacrifices and trials, I suddenly hear from SOMEBODY ELSE that you are suspected of murdering one of your kind? And a notable one for his animosity toward you on top of everything. _»

Okay, that was seriously getting on his nerves now.

«I DID NOT KILL HIM! » he shouted, making Jack wish he had earplugs. It was not that easy to cover your ears when one hand in handcuffed to a guy talking on his cellphone.

There was a silence on the other end of the line.

«…_I am going to pretend I did not hear you yell at me. _» Miss Anderson declared, her tone icily sharp.

Wow… did Alfred just gulp with anxiety? That woman was in a league of her own then. Not even _Russia_ could manage to pull off that trick.

«Miss Anderson… I… I'm sorry… I didn't mean any of… »

«_It matters not. _» she said to cut him off. «_Quite frankly, whether you killed him or not is irrelevant. What is important is the image of you it projected on the other nations. Who will do any trade with us if they fear for their lives when they approach you? _»

She… she did bring up a very good point. There had been no proof yet, but most of the nations were now very cautious of the distance between them and him. The ones that didn't seem to care at all were Jack, Matthew, Russia, though that was more because the bastard was fearless, Belarus, again, completely nuts and only caring about her beloved brother, and, surprisingly, Francis. Heck, the Frenchman even openly flirted with him (and almost got a black eye for his trouble, the «almost» being a courtesy of Jack).

«_Do you realise how hard it is for me to even maintain our currents deals? If it wasn't for this miraculous delay, we'd be in much bigger debts. _»

«A delay? » the North American nation repeated.

«_Afghanistan's government requested a week delay before continuing any affairs. It seems that they're having a lot of trouble keeping things in check back in their place. Care to explain that to me? _» Again, she was not asking, she was ordering.

Boy, how the mighty had fallen. She was one of his toughest boss yet!

«Hum… If I got it right, it makes everything unstable. The government, the military forces, the civilian mind states… it's pretty much chaos. »

Another silence was his answer, but this time, it was not of shock or anger. It gave him the impression of… someone pensive.

«_I… see… _» He could picture her, looking at the ceiling, seemingly like she could see through it and into the sky. It was a habit of hers and a source of tension for him. She had come up with quite a few ideas this way, but not many of them were ideas he approved of. « _I suppose there could be a way to take advantage of that… _»

«Huh? » He could NOT have heard right. Taking advantage of something as horrible as murder? «What do you mean «take advantage of that» ? »

«_Oh, right, I had almost forgotten about this silly fantasy of yours. You like to think of yourself as a hero. _» There was something extremely mocking in that apparently tired voice. For as much as they were forced to work together, Alfred and his boss could barely stand one another. She thought he was childish for talking about heroism, he thought she was horrible for her opportunism.

«I don't think myself as a hero, I am one! » he protested.

«_Of course, and you also live with an alien called Tony, I know. Stay out of trouble, Alfred; don't ruin everything again. _»

And she ended their conversation on that.

Needless to say that America sulked all the way to the hotel, leading to Australia questioning himself deeply about the nature of his relationship with his boss.

* * *

This whole ordeal was bugging Germany a lot. Quite frankly, he had trouble believing that America could have done such a thing.

Which explained why he was visioning the footage of the murder over and over again.

«What are you thinking, Afghanistan? Why did you show up to that place? » he muttered, asking the figure on the screen.

The tan nation was waiting, looking nervously around. The stress was perfectly justified as these were his last moments.

«Who did you expect to meet? » the German continued his interrogations.

Midnight.

He silently observed as the nation slight jumped at the sight of the soon-to-be murderer.

«You look surprised, but not afraid. Why? »

They exchanged a few words.

«You were expecting that person. You thought he was an ally or, at the very least, someone you ought to give the benefit of doubt. What did you have to gain by coming to meet that person? »

The shocked realization painted itself on Afghanistan's face.

«There, you just realized something horrible. Did you find out you were going to die? No, you didn't even do anything to defend yourself. Perhaps the thought didn't even cross your mind… » Germany sighed, suddenly feeling at lost, his strength leaving him.

Afghanistan was dead.

«And… your killer decides to leave your corpse behind, just like that… »

Just as he's about to leave, the murderer froze, realising where he had committed his crime. He turns around and quickly destroys the incriminating object.

Following an impulse, Germany looked at that last part again. Just before the moment the murderer froze, there had been something…

Leaning against the screen, he scrutinized the image, convinced that he had just missed something essential.

«To frame America, you had to be seen. If you were America, you just made a big mistake. If you remembered where the camera suddenly was, why destroy it when it's too late? Framing requires some evidences… killing needs discretion… To destroy it now…»

The answer was just on the tip of his tongue. What was he missing? What did he not see? He was so close to figuring it out…

«DOITSU! »

Jumping in surprise, poor Germany could not dodge in time an impressive tackle from the smaller nation.

Now on the ground, to the mercy of a crying North Italy, he had to calm down to prevent an explosion of anger that would strain his tedious relationship with Feliciano. The fact that said Italian was rambling some incomprehensible stuff was not helping his case.

«What is it? » he snarled, almost crossing the line of «explosion».

«I lost my prized wooden spoon! The one that I use to make my so delicious pasta! » he cried out in Germany's face. «You have to help me find it! »

«Italy! I'm in the middle of an investigation! »

«But it's my most important possession! I use it all the time! It's something only I can use to the fullest! » he protested.

«Well, if you were a bit tidier in your cleaning, maybe you wouldn't have lost yo… » Germany suddenly stopped, as if struck by lightning.

«Doitsu? »

The timed destruction… lost his most prized possession… why bother destroying the camera after the crime is done?

«Verdammt! » he shouted.

* * *

Jack slowly opened the door, exasperated by Alfred's bad mood and behaviour. Their walk to the hotel had been about as uneventful as one could get. The main problem with that was that it raised the tension between them to unbearable levels. Neither wanted to break the silence and it had quickly gotten nerve-racking.

It was with an audible sigh that the Aussie entered his room and dragged Alfred in.

Said American was driven out of his train of thoughts by the yank on his chain. At first a bit surprised, he realized that they had arrived.

«Well, at least the room doesn't look too bad. » he said out loud, breaking the heavy silence.

It was true. No nations were being cheapskates when it came to hosting, unless they were in particularly deep debts, which beg the question on why they even accepted to host in those situations.

Pride obliged, they knew. Who'd openly admit his or her weakness out loud, when you knew that they were many waiting for a single mistake?

Anyway, that was not his problem (actually, he knew exactly what kind of trouble that was, but he was already starting to get better, grudgingly though, since Miss Anderson was the one doing most of the job). What he cared was that he would at least be able to comfortably sleep on a good bed and dre…

Sweet mother of Superman!

Just… just a few meters away from him… staring at the Hero with eyes of pure darkness… the source of all evil on Earth…

Jack's koala.

«HELL NO! »


	6. My most heroic battle of all time

« I don't care what you say, how long you argue or whatever, that mass of evil is not sleeping in the same room as me! It'll try to kill me in my sleep and a Hero can't lose his time watching the darkest creature on Earth all night long. » he said, crossing his arms (and making Jack step closer to him in the process).

«Actually, that sounds exactly like what a Hero would do. » the Australian said with a frown.

As much as Alfred's moral compass agreed with Jack, his memory was sending him flashback of the world's most vile animal.

_It all started with young, naïve, cute, gorgeous him visiting his other bro, because he was that cool. This being his first visit to Australia's place was not an issue of course. Alfred had natural dispositions toward how to act in new hostile environment, which couldn't involve his almost, sort-of, brother Jack's territory. _

_Hum… when he thought about it, he looked really cute when he was a naïve aspiring hero back then..._

_Anyway, it started when he got off the boat that took him there. Jack had been waiting for him on the quay, not sporting his shades or his decorative Band-Aid yet. Following his arrival had been the traditional manly hug that they greeted each other with, brothers' exclusives they had responded to the ones that asked (which was ironic as Matthew always tried to escape these hugs). _

_«How was the trip on the boat? » Jack asked, half-way grinning._

_«Way too long! Dude, you live in a hole! » he whined since, back then, he was enough of a kid hero to have the right to include some angst to his personality. _

_«Thanks… » the Australian said coldly (one of the few times he managed to be cold actually). _

_«No, seriously, I think half the men lost their teeth of old age. » Alfred explained, pointing to the captain and his crew. _

_«Errr… Alfred, I don't think it's because of old age… » _

_«Well, it's not important anymore! » the North American shrugged, putting an arm around Jack's neck. «What's important is that I'm finally here and we can have an awesome time together! » he finished, cheering, his other arm pointing to the sky. _

_«That's more like it. » the Aussie grinned, having quite a few ideas on how to make fun of Alfred while he was the most vulnerable. _

_Unfortunately, Jack didn't have the opportunity to pull the first blow to Alfred's pride. _

_In fact, he doubted that anyone could ever make Alfred lose that much pride in less than a minute… though maybe Matt could, the guy was close enough to Alfred to know his most humiliating secrets. Hum… it was hard to say._

_He'd let history be the judge of that._

_Both guys were walking around town, chatting about some pointless everyday stuff, when they passed down a certain tree. Subconsciously, Jack slightly diverted his course not to be right under the tree's leaves and, too distracted by their conversation, forgot to tell Alfred. _

_The poor North American never noticed the brushing of the leaves just over his head, nor the silhouette of the creature that prepared to traumatize him for life. _

_Alfred almost fell to the ground when it happened; a powerful impact to the top of his head had made him tripped. Before he could realized what happened, he felt claws rummaged through his hair. _

_Now, we have to be fair to Alfred. As a natural hero, animals were always the kindest when it came to him, at least the ones in North America. Being attacked by something living that was not a human was an extremely disturbing first for him and, as of such, reacted in a way that would make him wish he died in a hole. _

_He screamed._

_High pitch._

_While begging Jack to «take it off! Take it off! TAKE IT OFF! »._

_As a responsible nice guy that was hosting his friend, sort of brother, and witnessing a predicament worthy of panic, he did the most natural thing to do, of course._

_He laughed his ass off. _

_«Jack, it's not funny! Help me! PLEASE! » he screeched to his «almost brother» rolling on the floor, holding his ribs. _

_The ordeal lasted long, both enemies having the will to kill the other. For hours (read seconds) they fought, extraordinary strength facing wild killing instinct. Neither let go, neither lost._

_It ended in a draw when Jack finally caught his breath and grabbed the koala that had dared attack the United States of America... and almost won. Eyes shining from the tears of joy that had rolled down his cheeks, the Aussie held down the animal that was trying to claw Alfred's face. _

_«Aren't you the vicious little guy? » he said, trying to stop himself from bursting out in another fit of laughter. He was rewarded with his effort with a scratch to the nose which drew a bit of blood. _

_Panting, it took Alfred several minutes before he dared speak again. When he did, however, his voice was loud with indignation._

_«Dude! You said Dropbears were a myth! » he yelled while pointing at the koala in his friend's arms. _

_«They are. It's just a koala. » Jack replied flatly. _

_«No way, that's a dropbear. It jumped down from a tree to attack me. » _

_«Which made you scream like a little girl. Wait till England and Matthew hears about this one. »_

_«Tch, there isn't anything to talk about except the most epic battle of all time. You just saw the great battle between Good and Evil. Consider yourself lucky. » the North American pointed out, his heroic mind taking over his predicament. _

_«Oh, don't worry. I consider myself VERY lucky to have seen that. Though I fail to see why a koala is the ultimate evil. » _

_«Think about it! » Alfred insisted, suddenly moving closer to the Australian, without losing sight of the vicious beast. «I am the Hero, I save people, which makes me the great defender of Good. » _

_Well, Jack certainly didn't want to argue on that again, not to mention it often lead to some pretty funny situation. He simply nodded to get Alfred to continue._

_«Since it attacked me unprovoked, it is Evil. If you consider how epic that battle was, then it becomes self-evident that it is not just your average evil monster, it's THE ultimate evil critter. See? 100% logic. » _

_Jack was so torn. Should he face palm now or later?_

«No, I'm not sleeping in the same room as this koala. » The North American Hero said, crossing his arms.

«Sorry to disappoint you, but I'm sleeping in this room and we are stuck together. I'm not sleeping somewhere else because you can't get over what happened back then. »

That certainly made Alfred stutter.

«W-what? I'm not traumatized! I'm just cautious of my archenemy! » he denied.

«Wasn't that Russia? » Jack asked, raising an eyebrow at the comment.

«He's second on my list! »

…a koala had scored higher than _Russia_ as America's archenemy. Well, there was just one possible answer.

A straight, flat «What? ».

«Oh, the commie will get what's coming to him one day, but right now, I'm focusing on the Lord of darkness that is STAYING IN THE SAME ROOM AS THE HERO! »

«Alfred, stop that. He's just a male koala. Every koala behaves like him. »

«No, he's the only one that attacked me! »

He was not going to win this argument, so it was better to pretend it made sense and ignore the problem.

«Oh, bloody hell… » the Aussie sighed as he stood up and unconsciously dragged Alfred in the bathroom. «I think I need a shower…»

«WOW! DUDE! » the North American screamed in horror.

Startled, Jack turned around to see the horrified look on Alfred's face and his finger pointing at the chain linking them.

«Oh… crap. »

* * *

«Who? » the confused voice rose once more from his lap.

«Canada, your owner, Kumafoji. » the poor North American sighed. His polar bear had an abyssal memory… or maybe his mind just didn't work that way.

«The only guy in the world awesome enough to hang with the Great Prussia. » Gilbert helpfully added.

The small animal tilted his head on the side and decided it didn't matter more than the fish on the table. With a small jump, he was on the table, eating what his owner had bought him for breakfast.

«Oh, hi Alfred, hi Jack. » Matthew suddenly greeted the two nations that had headed toward his table.

«Hi Matt/Mattie. » they responded in synch, both looking as exhausted as the other.

«Wow, what is it with you two? » Prussia asked, eating his own pile of pancakes (apparently, with enough nagging he could get the Canadian to cook even when they were in a hotel, how awesome is that?). « You look as if you didn't get an ounce of sleep.»

«We didn't. » They both slumped down in their chairs.

«Oh, I see. » the albino's face suddenly displayed a large grin. « You two hid your game pretty well up this now. Good job. »

«EW! We're not gay! » Alfred stood up with indignation, nearly making Jack fall from his chair.

…a stunned silence followed his declaration.

«What? », he said when he realized that all other three men were staring at him, displaying various levels of surprise.

«Since when are you, Alfred F. Jones, United States of America, _not oblivious!_ » Gilbert finally recovered, pointing a finger at him.

«When have I ever been oblivious? » The North American questioned, genuinely unable to understand their surprise.

They exchanged a look. They agreed. They nodded. It would be for the best to avoid answering that one or they would still be there the next week.

«Never mind that, Alfred. » Matthew suggested. «Just sit down and ask the waiter for something, I bet you're hungry. »

Finding the idea excellent (a Hero needs some fuel to save the world), Alfred promptly called for a waiter and both him and Jack could order.

«So, why don't you tell us the reason you're so tired then? » the Canadian started again, trying to make a pleasant conversation before another day of unending meetings.

Both men flinched, the memory fresh and the pain not fading anytime soon.

«Don't… ask… » Jack muttered, trying to chase the images burned in his brain forever. «A part of me died yesterday. I shall never be the same again. »

«Huh? What happened that was so terrible? America snores? » Prussia interjected.

«DO NOT! » said American snapped, spitting some of the food he was munching at the moment.

«Alfred, that's gross. Don't yell with your mouth full. » Matthew scolded, an arm raised at face level, just in case his brother still had some yelling to do.

«…We're handcuffed… think… » Jack answered, ignoring the now arguing North American brothers.

At first, Prussia didn't see the problem. The two were handcuffed, without the key, which was not entirely stupid considering that America was, in fact, stronger than Australia. You wouldn't want a possible murderer escaping that easily. In other words, they could not leave each other sides, not even for a moment…

Prussia suddenly saw what none had thought of when they had put Alfred under Jack's care. He could not hold it off.

He burst out laughing.

Of course, this immediately drew the attention of Alfred and Matthew.

«Why are you laughing like that? » the Canadian beat his brother to the question just a second earlier.

Just as he was about to answer, Gilbert saw the face of Alfred and had a disturbingly funny image of him timidly squirming in front of the bathroom, sending puppy eyes to Jack for the permission to go.

All attempts to get anything out of Gilbert for the duration of the breakfast were now officially doomed to fail.

«I told him… about the problem we faced last night. » Australia said, eating even though he was deeply annoyed by the albino's laugh.

Alfred unfortunately did not have such self-control. He instantly lunged at Gilbert across the table. Now, this should have been a completely forgettable event if not for a single detail: the North American was handcuffed to Jack.

Taken by surprise, the Australian didn't have the time to prepare and his hand followed the movement... sending the plate he was holding flying across the table.

A triple shock of horror was shared as a pancake flew straight toward Matthew's face.

It landed squarely in the center of Matthew's face with a simple rubbery noise.

«Oops. » Alfred apologized, trying not to laugh. «I apologize. »

Slowly, the Canadian reached for the sticky pancake. With one hand, he wiped his face while gathering the remains of the innocent paltry with the other. Such deliciousness forever lost… it was almost sad. The blonde man then turned his attention to his older brother.

«Apologize this! » Matthew shouted (which really was the volume of a normal speaking voice), ramming the pancake in Alfred's face.

Being the responsible adult and the eldest of the four nations, Gilbert immediately reacted in the most intelligent way.

«FOOD FIGHT! » the albino yelled, throwing a grapefruit just over the North American brothers and directly at the back of Feliciano's head, who was innocently eating with Romano.

The poor Italian instantly hid under the table, tears dwelling in the corner of his eyes. With extreme speed, he had gotten out his traditional white flag and was steadily declaring his withdrawing from any further fight.

«WHO IS THE MOTHERFUCKER THAT DID THAT? » South Italy shouted, enraged at the assault on his younger brother. His rage was promptly met with an egg to the face.

Proud of his hit, Poland grinned.

«Did you see that, Toris? I totally owned him! »

«I'm sorry, South Italy! I should have looked after him better! It's all my fault! » Lithuana rushed to the enraged Italian's side.

«YOU FUCKING CROSSDRESSER! » Romano yelled, charging Poland with the clear intend of smashing a bowl of cereal on his silky hair.

«Hey, that sounds like fun. What do you say, Raivis? » Sealand asked to his friend who was looking almost as enthusiastic as when Russia asked him to drive him home and stay the night.

«S-sure, Peter…» he agreed, shaking much more than the next guy, but agreed nonetheless. Solemnly, as if he was going to a friend's funeral, he grabbed some fruits and followed Peter toward the center of chaos, namely Prussia and America.

* * *

As the two smaller nations joined in on the fray of food bombing, there was a certain commotion going on at the Nordic table.

«Alright! Finally, someone decides to put this «food» to good use! » Denmark exclaimed as he jumped from his chair, a plate of sausage in his hand.

«Too bad you can't do the same with your brain… » a sleepy Norway muttered.

«Don't be silly. Nobody can start a «brain fight»… or at least one that is not gory. » the excited man replied in a condescending tone, as if talking to a child.

«URGH! » the Nordic nation rammed his face into the table, not able to take that much stupidity. «Why do I even bother? »

Next to him was Iceland, which was texting without caring about his surroundings and, to his dismay, immediately got the attention of his «older brother».

«Iceland, you agree with me, right? »

«Yeah, yeah, sure, whatever… » the younger nation replied, not even bothering to look up from his cellphone.

«So cold. » Norway cried, hurt at the lack of care in the other's voice.

Ignoring further comments, Denmark decided it was time to join in on the action.

* * *

In the aforementioned center of the chaos, two teams were now facing each other with the intent to send the other into the abyssal humiliation of defeat (and laundry). Matthew and Prussia were hiding behind a broken table (how the heck did Alfred manage to do that with an orange? ) while their enemies were resting behind the food counter. Kumajirou and Gilbird had deserted, the traitors, and taken refuge with Feliciano, who has promptly decided to cuddle them.

«What were you doing? I had to face their combined assaults for five minutes! » The Canadian hissed at his partner. «We could have lost! »

«Don't worry. » the albino grinned, the eyes of a predator showing on his face. «I left a few booby traps on the field. Trust me; they can't approach us now, especially handcuffed. »

«Booby traps? » Matthew repeated, a bit confused. «What kind of booby traps can you make in a food fight? »

«The slippery one. » Gilbert replied, lifting a banana peel.

«Oh. »

* * *

«Damn it, Mattie's good! » Alfred grunted, nursing his «injury», a gigantic red spot on his favourite jacket. He hoped that cherry syrup didn't resist washing machines…

«Forget that, Prussia's back; I just saw him crawl to their hiding place. » Jack declared, his head barely over the counter.

«Hum… what should we do, general? » the Hero asked, adopting their traditional military talk. God knows how often they had played mock war games together.

«Unless Prussia had hidden some munitions under his shirt… » The Aussie started while eying their own «weaponry». «we've got this one in the bag. » He finished with a grin.

«Excellent. » the American displayed a dark, sly smile. «In that case, let's prepare for s-»

His vision was suddenly filled by the green horror of a watermelon. And red. Lots of lots of red. Damn it!

«PREPARE FOR DEFEAT! » a childish voice boomed into their ears.

Now unable to see, he had to rely on his keen intuition and the eyes of his partner to identify the new threat.

«Peter! » Jack exclaimed, a slight hint of amusement piercing through his indignation.

As it turned out, Sealand, Latvia and Denmark had formed their own team and had chosen to silently (which was a big accomplishment for them) sneak up on Alfred and Jack.

«Tactical retreat! » The Aussie called, dragging Alfred along the way.

«YES! With this, the world will recognize the great nation that is Sealand! » The kid boasted, overly excited, not noticing how traumatized Raivis was at attacking two strong nations like America and Australia, nor how Denmark had chosen to use some of his ammunition as a snack.

Peter's joy could now only by equalled by Alfred's grumpiness.

«The Hero can't flee in front of his little brother! That's like destroying his reputation. »

«We're not running away from Peter, we're running away from the ambush that Matt and Prussia will be sure to unleash on our sorry asses if we stay and fight them! » Jack hissed, angry at himself for not seeing it coming when Denmark had stopped throwing sausages at the two younger nations.

A hint of pain tickled his shoulder when he felt an egg crashed on it.

«Bloody sniper! » he cursed, knowing that Poland was hiding (how weird! ) somewhere and throwing eggs at the nearest enemies.

His struggle with South Italy had not been long. Romano had stormed out of the place when Spain had started running toward him covered in tomato juice, calling for a hug.

«There! » Alfred suddenly turned right and slid on the ground, tripping Jack at the same time.

«Damn it, Al! » Jack turned to the sheepish American, his nose feeling a little bloody. However, this feeling faded when he saw an egg describing an arc in the sky, ready to crash on the Hero. «Look out! »

His first reflex was to push Alfred out of the way, but that failed miserably, considering he only could push him as far as the chain linking them. Despair filling his veins, he saw the deadly projectile inevitably close in on America.

«No! »

He closed his eyes, waiting for the impact that never came. As he slowly opened them again, he saw a white silhouette standing tall in front of them.

«Kiku! » Alfred cheered. His Japanese friend had shielded them with a silvery plate!

«America-san, I couldn't stand by while you were facing uneven odds. My presence shall balance the odds and make this fight honourable. » he said solemnly, though his cheeks were definitely red.

«Thanks man! You always look up for me. »

«…Wait. Matt and Prussia are facing even harsher conditions now, aren't they? How is that honourable? » Jack interjected. He swore that Japan had this sly air to him. That wasn't something you'd see every day.

«AWESOMENESS WAS INVENTED IN KOREA! »

Dumbstruck, Alfred and Jack shared an astonished look. Oh no, he didn't!

«Dude, you sent your bro to help ours? » Alfred asked, to which Japan nodded, still displaying that smug little smile of his. «Wicked, man, wicked. » The Hero grinned. «I like it. »

Meanwhile, Jack decided to check on the others' whereabouts.

On the other side of the room, Peter's team seemed to have settled down in their former hiding place, which meant they were now the ones with the most ammunition, Poland was still hiding somewhere out of their sight, Matt's team was still in the same place, an internal affair preventing the team from taking a decision.

Oh, how he loved Japan's idea.

«Well, mates, I think this is it. »

«Yeah, looks like it. It is time for the hero to shine. Ready for a heroic charge that will go down in the annals of history, guys? » Alfred asked, gathering some leftovers from the table and preparing to stand.

Both agreed.

* * *

Matthew's head was now facing the very dangerous threat of exploding. In most circumstances, having a new member to their team would have been a happy event. However, it just had to happen that Gilbert would talk about his awesomeness (which was really predictable) and that Korea would argue that it was first invented in him (again, very predictable).

«Guys, you're giving me a headache! » he whined, trying to cover up the noise they were making.

«He's the one that started! » they replied in unison, earning a groan of pain from the Canadian.

His only chance was if he distracted them somehow…

«Gilbert, what happened to your booby traps? I haven't seen anyone trip on them yet. » It was a feeble attempt, but he had nothing better than that in mind.

«Tch, they just got lucky. I swear I put those everywhere, even in front of the main door. No escapes for the cowards! I say you fight to the death or you don't fight. » The albino's passion for fights showing again.

However, his awesome enthusiasm didn't meet the glittering awe it should have.

«Fight to the death… » Yonsoo started.

«With food? » Matthew exchanged a not-so-convinced glance with the Korean.

«Aw come on, you two! We have to take this seriously if we want to win! » the ex-nation pleaded. His response was met with two arrogant smiles and eyes sparkling with evil.

«Oh, but we will win, do not doubt it. We definitely will win this fight. » they declared.

It was then, as the two were standing right in front of Prussia, that they heard the battle cry of the Hero and his loyal minions.

As one man (doubly so in the case of Alfred and Jack), they were charging toward Canada's team, their last projectiles in their hands, ready for a final assault to win or lose it all.

As if on cue, all three hiding nations stood up, picking whatever ammunition they had left. Without exchanging a single word, they started running, preparing to meet their enemies head on.

Alfred already knew who his opponent was going to be. He would make no mistake and crush him, for the crime of refusing to be his sidekick, the one of stealth insult against the blatant Hero he was and, worst of all, ramming a pancake in his face.

Ten meters separated the two teams and already they were preparing their throws.

Matthew happened to lock eyes with Alfred just there. From that moment on, none looked away, obeying an impulse and a silent challenge.

Five meters left before any contact (meaning Prussia was not that happy about the food fight)…

Blue eyes gazed at violet ones.

Matthew's arm was reaching forward, straight toward his jacket. He would not permit this!

And neither would a certain someone else.

«WHAT THE BLOODY HELL IS GOING ON HERE? » England's voice boomed in the dinner room, prompting the great fighters to look around… in mid charge.

The North American brothers violently collided and fell on each other, making Jack lose all equilibrium and ram his head directly into Gilbert's stomach. While the poor Prussian was sent flying backward, Korea's leg hit Alfred's arms, making him trip in Japan's direction, which actually dodged by rolling on the floor… ruining his so far immaculate white vest.

«Maple… » Matthew groaned from under Alfred and parts of Jack.

«So not cool… » Alfred added, restraining from adding something about Iggy always trying to ruin his heroic actions.

«P-pain was invented in Korea… » Yonsoo pathetically said, holding his bleeding nose tightly.

«Mate, I want a refund on that invention of yours… » Jack complained, his left arm being particularly stiff from all those unexpected yanking.

Ignoring every single one of these complaints, the British gentleman walked right in the middle of the dinner room, fuming as he realized the apocalypse that must have went through this place.

«A food fight? A FOOD FIGHT? » he yelled, hysterical. «Hundreds and thousands years old countries destroyed a five-star hotel dining room THROUGH A FOOD FIGHT? AM I DREAMING? »

«NO, YOU'RE NOT DREAMING, BECAUSE THIS FOOD FIGHT WAS WON BY THE ONE AND ONLY SEALAND! » a childish voice answered.

«One and only? What about us? » Denmark asked to Latvia, who had calmed down somewhat.

England had to stop himself from blinking before he could decide to advance toward his youngest kid and scold him properly.

«Peter! Young man, you are in so much trouble! » he started on a low-threatening tone, his gaze locked on the still enthusiastic micro nation. It was however unfortunate under these circumstances, otherwise he could have seen the «booby trap» that Gilbert had planted… now right under his right foot.

He comically fell on his back, under the sound of the others' laugher, which excluded Latvia, the poor boy was horrified.

«THAT'S IT! » England screamed, standing up, his face tomato red from the anger. «YOU'RE ALL G-» he ranted before an egg exploded in his face.

«Boom, headshot. » a victorious Poland grinned, sitting on a nearby table.


	7. No way! Moral guardians were right!

Germany had called for an emergency meeting soon after the now infamous incident in the dining room. Alfred and Jack were well on their way to meet the others now, after changing and taking a shower… which was more trouble than it was worth, really, but they didn't want to remind Arthur of the incident. They just knew he was going to be enraged for the rest of his stay, approximately two weeks, now that the leaders' meeting were postponed.

So far, they only knew that Sealand had been confined in his room by England, the whereabouts of the others had remained unknown for now.

It was not particularly surprising after the mother of all scolding they had received from one of the most ridiculously angry Arthur they had seen in their lives. Even the ones he had no authority, past or present, on had a run for their money in that rant.

Well, except one…

Just as England had started to rant, Matthew had stepped forward, blaming himself for the entire mess. Of course, it was mostly true, if not taking into account the fact that America was the one that had thrown the punch and made the first pancake fly, or the fact that Prussia was the one that had yelled «Food fight! » and got the others into it, which were not dragged into this, minds you, or that Australia could have stopped the fight by not teaming up with America or that…

Well, there wasn't just ONE person responsible.

However, none of that really mattered since England's response baffled them all.

«Of course it is your fault, America! »

Canada froze in place, as if not believing it. Why? Seriously, why? Why was no one bothering to learn that he was Canada, Matthew Williams? Was it so hard? They looked alike, he'll admit it, but after a few centuries, SOMEONE could notice the differences! And even THEN, if that was just too FRICKING HARD, couldn't they at least notice that he was not his brother when Alfred was standing a few meters away!

But no, that was also out of their reach. After all, he was just Canada, the second largest country in the world, second only to Russia. Why should he be bothered that a guy that raised him forgets about him all the time?

Just like that, Matthew walked out of the room, no one running after him (though Gilbert tried, he had been stop dead in his track by England, who did not even realise that Matthew was walking out on him).

Seconds later, Arthur had turned at his two other sons, suddenly realizing that this Alfred was still handcuffed to Jack. It did not take long for him to understand his mistake, especially after the look he was getting from the three other nations.

«Oh bullocks… » he cursed.

That guilt had been short-lived, but it had been there. That was the minimum, but it seemed like the minimum was not exactly enough to make that bad taste leave everyone's mouth. Heck, even when Korea admitted that he had no idea who he was teaming up with, he at least said that he had been a good teammate and that he himself was sorry for not knowing him better.

Soon enough, Arthur had started ranting again.

* * *

_It was a perfect morning, one like she had not seen in many years. Of course, the calm flow of the river in which they were bathing their feet, the delicate breeze rummaging through their hair and the songs of the birds chirping, all of that was very nice, but they were not really what was making this particular morning perfect. No, it was simply the presence of the young man at her sides. _

_America's visits were longer every time. She was not complaining, not at all. Quite honestly, she was longing for them more than the ones for any member of her family. Was it bad of her? Whenever those thoughts crossed her mind, Vietnam felt very ashamed of such horrible ideas, but a look at the self-proclaimed hero was all it took the make her forget every worry. _

_«Hey, Lan! Look, at the shape of that cloud, it looks exactly like Iggy's eyebrows! »he cheerfully pointed to the sky. Of course, it was simply a gigantic cloud, no shape whatsoever. _

_Proud of his joke, Alfred started laughing, much to the delight of the Asian nation. It was a melody to her ears. _

_Innocence, good, truth. _

_Those were the things she could hear when he laughed, some of them she thought would never hear of again. Not after…_

_«Lan? » The American turned to her, surprised by her sudden sadness. _

_Oh, and concern too. _

_«I'm fine, Alfred. I was just thinking about something else. » she explained sheepishly._

_«But I'm right over here! » he whined. «What is more interesting than the Hero? I thought you said you liked it when I visited! » _

_Oh great, now he was pouting. _

_Actually, it was pretty great. It made him look younger than he was, less likely to hurt anyone, less likely to..._

_«Of course I'm happy you're here, Alfred. I really, really am. » she reassured, gently stroking his cheeks, surprising herself. When had she gotten that daring? _

_He had frozen when he felt her soft hand touching his face. In less time than it took him to swallow a burger whole, blood had rushed to the exact same spot her hand was. _

_«L-Lan? » he said, extremely uneasy all of a sudden._

_Slowly, she leaned toward him, ignoring the mad beatings of her heart in her chest, ignoring the warnings her mind was sending her, ignoring the whole world but him. She pressed her lips against his. _

_«I love you. » she whispered. _

_The rest of her words were lost with the winds, to all except to the man of her heart. _

* * *

They quickly found their seats in the room and sat down. Predictably, they were the last to arrive, with the exception of Matthew who, they suspected, wouldn't show up at all and even that was if Germany had remembered to send him a message. While he sometimes knew who the Canadian was, it was never without someone pointing him out in the right direction. Without a doubt, it would be their responsibility to inform him of what would transpire in this emergency meeting.

When Ludwig saw that everyone he asked to come was listening, he started.

«I have called upon this meeting to share a discovery I made yesterday night while I was watching the recording of the murder. » The German declared, his voice firm and loud.

Not many things could grab the attention of so many countries all at once, but this was certainly enough. Even the ones that were convinced of America's culpability and thus certain nothing surprising would be revealed leaned in.

«There was one thing bugging me about the video. At first, I couldn't tell what it was, but the more I watched it, the more that feeling grew. There is an unnatural action in that act. There is more to this murder than it appears. » He paused. Germany eyed each and every one of the nations he could, trying to pick a hint, anything to could point toward the killer.

This was a very important moment and the German wasn't arrogant enough to think that he would see everything. Just before the meeting, he had asked Japan and Italy to look at the others' reactions. Japan had a keen sense of observation and perception, whenever it was not concerning himself, and, while Italy could be distracted very easily, he also had the gift of being embarrassingly sharp when it came to making serious nation ashamed (No, Germany was not bitter about that part of his lov… his good friend. He had come to terms with it… after every public meeting they had attended together. ).

«You see, there is one thing that really makes no sense no matter how you look at it. From the gesture done by the nation killer, many deduced that America was the criminal.» For his self-control at the moment, Alfred mentally awarded himself with the heroic virtue trophy of the century. «Others have theorized that it was instead framing. »

A wave of ascertainment went through the nations rank. Indeed, those were the two theories that were recognized by the nations at the moment.

«Whatever the truth is, there is one thing that makes no sense no matter the stance one might take. » As he said this, England was suddenly struck by comprehension. Of course, how could he have not seen it before! Now he could see exactly where Germany was going with this, except for one little detail he suspected was the reason the German had waited until now to call a meeting.

«What makes no sense is the last act we see before the end of the footage. »

«The murder? I knew you were a stupid potato bastard, but that is a whole new level of stupid! » A mocking South Italy rose from his seat, forcing his little brother to try to calm him down. Not many were inclined to take Romano's view of Germany, but they had to agree that the apparent «discovery» was a fact obvious to anyone here.

«No, Italy, I am not talking about the murder. » he denied, suddenly getting everyone's attention back. «What am I talking about is the very last thing that happened, namely, the destruction of the security camera. »

«But it makes sense! No one wants to be filmed while committing a crime! » Switzerland exploded, just a few minutes away from taking out his guns. This whole ordeal was making him worry about his little sister and _nobody threatens his little sister_!

«You're wrong! To frame someone, you want people to see your victim! » Jack jumped at the opportunity, locking his gaze into the hot-blooded man's.

Before the inevitable trouble started, Germany took the matter in his own hands and shouted over the raising whispers.

«SHUT UP NOW OR I WILL NOT REVEAL WHAT I HAVE DISCOVERED! »

For the first time in the history of the world meetings, Germany actually managed to sustain order by shouting over everyone else. Of course, the devouring curiosity he had awakened in them was a great part of it. He had planned this reunion and he would not let anything disturb it. It was way too important for that.

«Good. » he said when every single nation had been silenced by their own curiosity. «As I was saying it makes no sense. If America is the killer, then it was much too late to destroy the camera, it had no purpose. Unless he thought that destroying that device somehow erased the footage inside the building, it was entirely pointless. »

«We all know America is an idiot! We don't need any more proof! » Cuba yelled from his seat, prompting said American to stand up from his chair and try to lunge at his from his side of the room.

In one synchronise, elegant, coordinated… as if, it was complete chaos.

In all honesty, many were the nations that shrieked in fear when they saw America get angry and start screaming insults. Many were the ones that back away carefully, eying the two snarling nations at one another.

It was by the combined efforts of Australia, England, France, Germany and quite surprisingly Russia, that they stopped the two archenemies from fighting. When he had felt the cold shiver run down his spine at the tall man's contact, Cuba had notably calmed down, but still sent a few death glares to America.

Speaking of America, his thoughts were as full of violence as the glares he was receiving.

If only he had been allowed to have his twin guns… No! He would have been imprisoned here and there and he could not have denied it.

If only they hadn't restrained him…There, not permanently damaged, by a few broken bones would put the bastard in his place!

It was too bad he was not allowed (as if! He was simply going along with their ridiculous demands, because he was that heroic! ) to do so much as anything that could be considered threatening.

«Well, now that things have calmed down, perhaps I will be able to finish this time. » the German cleared his throat as he made his way back to his own seat. «So, if it was America, destroying the device was useless. However, if it was framing, it would make even less sense. As Australia already mentioned, you want your victim to be seen. That purpose accomplished, destroying the camera still makes no sense. »

Most nations stopped to think about it. It did… sound meaningless… Where was he going with this?

«I was truly lost until Italy burst in the recording room and start complaining about his lost spoon. » Still made no sense to most, England, on the other hand, was just waiting for one thing to be said before all the pieces of that puzzle to be put in place. «It was then that it hit me: the killer was not done. »

The temperature of the room seemed to drop.

«We all thought that Afghanistan's death was the goal of that assault, but I digress. By destroying the recording device with THAT timing, the killer clearly had something else in mind. This is why, yesterday night, I asked the investigators to interrogate his leader once more, this time, with the list of belongings in mind. »

America gasped and, at the echoes of it, knew he was not the only one.

«Indeed, one of Afghanistan's possessions was accounted for. I am talking about this. » The German then put a hand in the pocket of his pants and took out his cellphone.

In a silence never equalled in that room, the nations could only stare at Germany.

«Why would a cellphone be valuable enough to trigger this, you may ask? It is a simple opinion, but I do not think it is the cause, but rather something the killer could not overlook. Afghanistan was clearly waiting for someone that night. Even when faced by a nation whom he could not identify, he was not overly surprised. Under these circumstances, I believe that the murderer simply called his victim on his cellphone and arranged a rendezvous in the field of vision of that camera. »

«WHAT? »

«Yes, Denmark, I believe that it was no coincidence that it happened just there. The investigators were very surprised by their own mistake and I honestly don't blame them. By making the crime happen before a camera, it gave the impression that all was said and done. This trick ensured that we did not immediately look for people's cellphones. » With that, he put his cellphone on the table and made a very strict gesture. «Everyone will now leave their cellphones in this room for a proper examination. As soon as this meeting is over, they will collect them all and look through them. Rest assure that every secret they might hold will be kept secret if they are not relevant to this investigation. Of course, they will be given back when that part is over, but I shall insist on a great caution, now that we know the killer used Afghanistan's cellphone to contact him.»

The inconspicuous items now felt burning in their hands. Many eyed them in fear that they would ring.

«I now ask of you to leave your cellphones on this table. Remember that refusing will make you extremely suspect in regards to this crime. » Germany finished his explanations.

In a frightfully robotic manner, most nations left the objects on the tables, worried looks on their faces. However, there was one that had still not moved.

«Germany, might I ask you what you expect to find in these? Of course, there are no voice recordings with these devices and texting would be an extremely foolish thing to do in this situation. » Arthur asked, loud enough for everyone to hear. The nations stopped their actions altogether to stare once more at the German.

«You are right, these two things are not practical at all. » he conceded, a frown breaking his calm mask. England was up to something. He had been the first to realize where he was going, that had been extremely clear. It was hard to believe that the former empire could not see his goal now. «It is however possible to know who called Afghanistan recently. »

At that, a few nations could not hide their horrors fast enough. Suddenly, Germany understood what England had done. It was too late to pretend one didn't have his cellphone on himself, for they were already on the table. They could not do anything else now and the culprit might have already betrayed him or herself.

«Very well, that was all I wanted to know. » Arthur said, casually placing his cellphone with the others.

No one had made any comment after England's question; rather most of the nations seemed to be in a hurry to leave, save the cunning ones like England and the careless ones like France, Russia or Denmark.

Germany could now face Japan and Italy freely.

«Did anyone stand out? » he asked, ready for the worst.

«Yes. » Japan said, perfectly polite, but in his expression, you could see he was greatly uneasy. «During your speech, China-neesan looked extremely irritated. I think it has less to do with what you said than a reminder of what happened during the murder. Other than him, Pakistan, Iran and Iraq looked extremely concerned when England questioned you. I suspect they were calling Afghanistan quite often. Otherwise most of the nations were simply hiding their emotions and simply showing horror, though some, like South Italy was really horrified. »

As soon as he had concluded, he fell into deep thoughts, which would have alarmed his friend greatly, had it not been for the timely distraction Feliciano provided by jumping around Ludwig's neck.

There was at least one more person that had been quite disturbed by what had been explained, more than she should have been.

But Japan could not list his older sister among the suspects without talking to her first.

* * *

She was feeling nauseous. The more she thought about it, the more that feeling grew.

Vietnam was barely restraining herself from running away to the hotel and locking herself in her room. Instead, she was walking at a very fast rhythm, her muscles twitching as she stopped herself from letting go of all inhibitions.

She was alone in this part of the building. Many intended to stay for a while, at the very least to inform their bosses about the new situation. The Asian nation had no similar intention; all she had in mind was going away.

«My, my, you seem in a hurry. » a childish voice came from behind her, making her freeze in place.

«R-Russia? » she muttered as she turned around to face the cold nation. «What are you doing here? » This time, her voice was much less wavering, closer to the real thing.

«Oh, but I was curious about you. » He took a few steps toward her. «You see, you looked very distressed when you were asked to leave your cellphone behind you. Was there something in there you'd rather not let people see? A few phone calls to poor little Afghanistan, perhaps? » He was inches away from her now and she could see his metal pipe hanging behind him.

«Yes. Your point being? » Vietnam replied, trying to hide the fear that was gripping her guts. «Many of us have communicated with him before he died, you included. »

«Ah, yes. » He exclaimed, still smiling like a child. «My leader wanted to discuss about the oil industry with his own boss. It is such a shame that this won't be possible, da? »

«Yes… » she nodded, backing away slowly. «It truly is a shame. »

«You're a good actress; did anybody ever tell you that? » He whispered.

«W-What do you mean? » There had only been one occasion in which she had been more afraid than now. The Russian was not letting her put any distance between them. If he moved his arms in the slightest, he would push her back.

«It is impressive on how much you can hide your true thoughts. » His breath was cold on her face; he was too close. He was… frightening.

Thud. That was the sound that broke down one of the scariest faceoff Vietnam ever had to go through. Diverting their eyes to the source of the noise, they discovered something they hadn't expected, if only for the sheer lack of probability it would happen here and there. Just a few meters away from them, someone had tripped in the emergency stair and fallen face first onto the hard ground of the corridor.

The other nation didn't seem to notice their presence. A young man resembling America beyond what was possible stood up, dusting his clothes and massaging his bruised nose, all the while muttering some gibberish in French.

«Matvey? » the Russian yelled, incredulous.

The sudden eruption startled him, too certain to be alone just a second before. Turning to them, he spoke in a voice almost too quiet for Vietnam to understand.

«Ivan? Vietnam?» he said, a bit confused. Just as they were about to answer, his brain seemed to register their proximity and he abruptly blushed. «I'm sorry! A-am I interrupting s-something? »

She thanked every single being she could think of when the tall man distanced himself from her.

«Oh no, don't worry about that. We were just talking. What about you? I didn't see you at the meeting. » Russia talked as if he was not scaring the life out of a fellow nation just a few seconds ago. That, more than a lot of things, sounded creepier to Vietnam than everything else.

«Oh, nobody told me there was one. It's a member of the staff that found me in my room that tipped me off. He was surprised to see that I had not gone at that meeting the others had all talked about. » Canada explained with a very sheepish tone, as if it was his fault.

«Ah, this is very sad, da? Come with me, Matvey, I will explain it to you while we go there. »

«Ah, t-that's great, Ivan. I-I mean, if Vietnam doesn't mind… » he hesitated, shooting a look at the other nation.

«Oh no, it is no problem at all, we were done talking. » Vietnam shrugged it off with more courage than she thought she had. Dear her, she WAS a good actress, especially when it came to pretending not to hear the dark whispers of Russia's mantra.

«Oh, i-in that case… » the poor Canadian started.

«Yes, let's go. » The tall man reached for him and dragged him in an uncomfortable embrace, ignoring the Asian nation altogether.

Vietnam was more than happy at the turns of event, though who that other nation was stayed a complete mystery for her. Now, if only she could make it so her legs were no longer jelly, she could run away before Russia came back!


	8. I ask the question! I'm the Hero

Was it stupid? Truly, was it stupid to forget unpleasant things? After thousands of years, was he not permitted to erase the most unpleasant things from his memory? Rarely had China been forced to admit it, but, yes, today, he felt extremely stupid.

He had let go of many things to fight off insanity. For as one as old as himself, it was a dangerous threat. He had no intention of ending up like Russia.

That man had been through dark times and had been trapped inside them for the longest time. He was now talking about taking over the world. «Becoming one with Russia», he put it that way.

It was painful to think of a nation as powerful as him in that sorry state, not that he'd ever say it out loud for fear of a brutal death by either metal pipe or kitchen knives. He had let out a sigh of relief when he had heard that Belarus was among the few not to show up at this meeting.

The sad part was that Russia had done the same.

He shook his head in pity. For someone to fear a sibling that badly… it was sad.

Seeing things under that light should normally make him praise himself for his wisdom and being able to easily let go of the past. However, for once, this sort of things did nothing to help his mood.

He was feeling extremely stupid for trying to erase that conversation from his mind. For some times ago, China had been faced with a very unpleasant question, one that reminded him of dark times. As soon as it had been over, he had tried to banish it from his memories, foolishly, in retrospect.

The only thing he could remember was hearing that question, spoken by a nation whose face and voice were long gone. They were alone that time, that he knew, and the other had not acted naturally, he thought he remembered. That was when he had been asked this:

«What happens to a country when its nation dies? »

* * *

Scariest… ten minutes… ever!

He swore to never trip in a staircase again. It was way too stressful for his health.

Canada had the extremely persistent feeling that he had pissed off Russia when he had interrupted his conversation with Vietnam and, for the love of maple syrup, _you do not piss off Russia!_

At first, he had simply been really hugging too much (and too strongly too), as if he wanted to make sure his poor follower would not leave. That had been the first clue. The second was the constant «kolkolkol», the creepy aura and the incredibly terrifying «close call» «accidents» that had almost happen with the rusty metal pipe the tall man kept swinging around.

As soon as they had reached the conference room, they had found Germany, North Italy and Japan discussing. Well, truthfully, the two northern countries only assumed they had been talking, because a very unnatural silence had fallen on the room when they had pushed the door open.

Their sudden entrance had been frowned upon by Germany, but as soon as Matthew explained that he had forgotten to call him, the strict man had presented his apologies and accepted the Canadian's cellphone (he actually felt like the German would have ordered him to hand it over anyway).

That was when Matthew turned around to see a calmly smiling Russia… that was not even looking at him.

Remembering the trip to the room, the Canadian went on against all rational thoughts and walked past the tall man without even looking at him. Just as he was about to reach the door, he heard Japan ask Russia if he had any other business there, only to be replied that the Russian wasn't exactly sure as to why he had come in the first place.

Hallelujah! He could only thank his guardian angel (if there was such a thing) that he was so forgettable.

So, yeah, now he was doing his best to never meet the Russian alone ever again. Oh, he wasn't going to run away again, but he'd at least bring his faithful hockey stick and a couple of missiles with him, just in case. Better safe than sorry.

And the first thing to do, starting now, was to look in front of himself when walking. This way, he could avoid bumping into other people, like the Netherlands.

Both nations let out a slight groan of pain when they collided.

«Sorry, Lars. I… there is a little too much on my mind right now. » The Canadian apologized, shooting a few glances around to make sure Russia hadn't suddenly recovered his memory.

«Oh, it's okay, Matthew. I guess with what's going around, everyone is not in their right mind. » He stood up, helping his friend dust his clothes. «I guess that goes double with you since it's your brother we're talking about here. »

«Yeah… » Canada whispered, disheartened. «I think he's going to be alright, he always comes through… » He lightened up somewhat.

A silence followed those words. The Netherlands was not really a man of words, not with Matthew anyway.

After what the smaller man had done for him, he had always felt as if he could understand him all too well. It was a bit scary sometimes to hear him put his thoughts in his own words before he could.

«Hum… Lars? » The Canadian called, quite hesitant all of a sudden. «Can I talk to you about something really important? »

His friend simply nodded.

* * *

«So, what do you plan to do now, Alfred? » Jack wondered, quite comfortable on the couch they were sharing.

«Hey, don't talk in the middle of the game! I can't concentrate! » Said American grunted between his teeth, jerking both his hands forward in an attempt to magically pulverize the zombies that were slowly moving toward them.

«Mate! Stop doing that! You made me threw my controller across the room! Again! » He protested, sick of that same event repeating itself over and over again.

«Ah! That means it's up to the Hero to save the day! » Alfred grinned, all too happy that the spotlight was on him. The fact that the hotel room was empty other than themselves was a big relief too. That Lord of Darkness had apparently taken a nap in the nearest tree outside the hotel. How did the thing get there? He had no idea and, frankly, didn't care unless it involved innocent victims that needed saving.

Australia was starting to find this end of morning boring. Sure, videogames like «Gore Explosion of Zombies XI» were a delicacy (which he frankly had no idea how the American could play that, considering he was the biggest wimp ever when it came to horror movies), but the fact that he could barely enjoy it before Alfred started going on a rant considerably attenuated the awesomeness of it.

Well, just like any other situation which involved heavy Heroism, the best was the shock treatment.

Jack whipped his left arm quickly, knocking the controller out of the Hero's hands and before he had the time to take it back, the game was over.

«JACK! I WAS KICKING ZOMBIES' ASSES! How could you do this to me? » Alfred exclaimed way too loudly for the sake of the Aussie's ears.

«Alfred, what do you intend to do about the murder? I thought you said you were going to show England. » That sounded so out of place for a second that Jack thought that it wouldn't stop the American. To his surprise, Alfred sat down and looked begrudgingly at the ceiling.

«I don't know. I hadn't thought that far ahead. » He admitted, causing the other nation to groan in exasperation.

«Come on, mate! Why do you think that no one takes your plans seriously? » Perhaps if he racked Alfred's nerves enough, the American would think of something.

Hey, as long as you don't give up…

«Because they obviously don't know what a true hero is. » He shrugged. It was not like he should care about the other nations. Heroes were always alone in their fights, save their precious sidekicks.

«Because everyone knows you never think things through! » Jack yelled, getting quite annoyed at the stubbornness of the former British colony.

It was very fugitive, but the Australian was shocked by the anger that flashed in Alfred's eyes. Before he could open his mouth, it had disappeared, as if pushed aside, somewhere hidden…

«That's stupid, but, hey, now's the time to prove them wrong. » He said with his usual Heroic tone.

Jack shivered at how fake it sounded to him. That was not how Alfred spoke and that certainly was not a Hero's smile.

It was the smile of someone that was so thoroughly pissed that he might crush his PlayStation's controller if he wasn't careful, which was exactly what was happening at the moment.

«Err… Sure, what do you want to do? » Jack asked, a bit hesitant. Why did he have the feeling America was going to say something like «crush them» or «make them regret the day they were born» or just the plain «kill them all»?

«Hum… how about we interview everyone we meet? That way we can gather information, check the others' alibi and marks the one that are too nervous. » Alfred proposed, quite calmly.

«Wow. » Jack blinked. «That's… a really good idea. »

Immediately, the Hero crossed his arms and gave him a very smug smile.

«Of course, I am the Hero. Who else is going to have good ideas? »

«Let's not go into that. » The Aussie took the smugness head on and countered it with a very healthy amount of skepticism.

«What was that? » The other nation inquired, leaning a bit closer.

«Let's just go. » Jack sighed as he stood up and made Alfred follow him outside.

* * *

«I think a war will erupt! »

A heavy silence fell in the smaller room.

He had expected something big, secret, dangerous, when Canada had asked him to go to a more isolated place. To say he had been given more than he bargained for was somewhat of an understatement.

Lars didn't know what to say as his friend broke down in tears just a meter away from him. For starters, he was not a man of many words, but there were a few things he could do. He owed it to his friend, after what he had done for him.

_His whole body was painful. It had been this way since he had been invaded and, honestly, he had given up on hope. The Allies were not coming for him, not yet anyway. They had more important objectives – or they didn't care, it didn't matter – than to save his people, to relieve them of their pain._

_At first, it had been a single limb. His right hand had stopped hurting. It had been long enough for him to forget the feeling of peace that was associated with a healthy body, so he had been freaked out by the phenomenon, thinking it probably meant he didn't have long left. However, when it spread to the rest of his arm, he had been struck by comprehension. He was being rescued! _

_One by one, his body was freed from the pain until…_

_«Are you alright? », came a very soft, albeit tired, voice from over him._

_A young man with blonde hair, looking at most seventeen, was kneeing next to him, holding bandages and water. Undoubtedly, he was a soldier. His uniform was not familiar, but he knew from the state his body was in that he was not an invader. Nonetheless, he was covered in blood splatters. _

_«D-Don't mind me… helps the others. I'll feel better once they recover. » He protested weakly. He knew that made no sense to a normal human, but that was all he could manage to say._

_«Of course you will, but if you become healthier by yourself, you'll be able to help them.» The soldier smiled, making him drink despite his objections. _

_It was then, when he saw that knowing smile, that he found out he was facing another nation. _

_«W-who are you? I've never seen you before… » He said, grunting when the blonde nation started bandaging his wounds. _

_«The dominion of Canada. », Matthew answered simply, focusing on the task at hands. _

_«Thank you… » Lars whispered, a surge of gratitude assaulting his mind as he felt his people's relief. _

_«You're welcome. Now… eat up. You need it. » The Canadian declared, handing him a piece of bread. _

_«But… » _

_«My soldiers are giving out military supplies. Your people will be fine, I promise. » He stopped him, cutting his protest short._

_«What about you? » The Netherlands tried to stand, having trouble believing the other. _

_«We'll manage, don't worry. » Canada shrugged it off with a simple smile. _

That had been the first time he had met his friend… and the first time he had felt how strong he was beneath that polite exterior.

Yet he was crying, having come to the inescapable conclusion. This conflict would worsen with time, the suspicions making mistrust common sense, until it all expanded into a full blown war.

«W-we have… to find whoever's… responsible for this! » Matthew sobbed.

A pair of strong arms brought him into his friend's embrace, offering a shelter to let go of it all.

«You can count on me, Matthew. I will help you in every way I can. » Lars promised, his determination harder than ever.

* * *

«I was in my room, sleeping, like any other normal person would be doing at the time. » Belgium replied, not exactly happy to be questioned by the number one suspect in that investigation.

«Or were you? » Alfred leaned closer, one eye narrowing in a creepy manner.

«Yes, gosh, leave me alone! » she yelled, freaked out. Her seat at the table was empty a minute later. So far, their questioning had not given a lot of results, mostly because the few people they had managed to speak to had either given a quick explanation and left or had plainly refused to speak to them. At least, they had been lucky enough to be invited at Hungary's table at lunchtime. Before their arrival, she had been speaking to Belgium and Ukraine, but, unfortunately, the two other female nations did not share most of her interests.

Two hot men handcuffed that wished to speak to them? Yes please!

«What about you, Hungary? » Jack turned to the yaoi fan, which was so happy that one of her fantasy was becoming real. She had to speak to Japan about this somehow… damn, she missed her cellphone now. Oh well, she could always borrow a camera or two from her friend, the Japanese always carried a few on his person, just in case.

«Oh, I was exchanging stuff with Japan over the net. » She said, blushing at the vivid images that were forming in her head when she imagined how the two had spent the night together.

_«I'm the Hero and stuff! » America had said for no reason at all. _

_«Yes. Yes, you are, mate and cricket. » Australia approved, his koala jumping around the room, spreading sparkles and love to make the place more romantic. _

_Of course, it instantly worked. America turned to the other male and, his tone extremely sexy, he leaned toward Australia. _

_«Oh, I love it when you say «mate». It gives me so many ideas. »_

«Really? What kind of stuff were you exchanging with Kiku? » Alfred asked, not noticing the dreamy look in her eyes.

_They broke out of a particularly heated kiss, their clothes torn up by their passion. _

_«I'm hungry and I shall eat burgers, like I always do. » America declared, killing the mood «a little». _

_The nation moved his muscular body (Oh my God! He was swaying his hips in a way that made Hun… err… Australia even hornier. ) farther away from Australia who desperately watched as he went to rummage through the fridge. _

_Australia let out a groan of deception when America took out dozens of burger and placed them on the bed. _

_«Please, America, I want you. »_

«Hungary? » Jack called, surprised by the lack of answer and by the giggling.

_«But I craved for burgers… » America replied. Then, his posture changed and he looked much sexier as he grinned. «Like this. » He completed, stroking the food against his manly chest. _

_«I'll go get my Vegemite then. » Australia enthusiastically ran to the fridge, taking out his famous green slimy stuff._

«What's her deal? » America asked to Ukraine, which was sitting next to the daydreaming nation. Said girl raised her shoulders, indicating she was just as lost as them.

_The two men rested on the bed, slightly panting from the expression of their undying and totally not imaginary love. Covered in pieces of bread, meat and vegemite, America snuggled to Australia. Ocean blue orbs of beauty met wild untamed passion as the two brothers' gaze were locked into the other._

_«I meant to tell you this for the longest time, Australia, but I never found in me the courage to show my real feelings... I love you. » _

_The Australian eyes sparkled a thousand times before he replied. _

_«I love you too. » _

_They closed their eyes and started getting closer and…_

«YES, KISS EACH OTHER! MAKE OUT WITH YOUR BROTHER! » Hungary stood up from her chairs, startling all three other nations with a high pitched squeak.

Then what she actually said began to sink in.

«Kiss each other? » Alfred repeated with a shaky tone.

«Make out with your brother? » Jack said with the very same tone.

Suddenly realizing that she had been daydreaming way too much and had actually yelled her fantasies, the woman nervously laughed it up.

«Hehehe… oops? »

«GOD, WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU? » The American recovered from his surprise. He knew she had some sort of fetishes concerning boys on boys, but that was just messed up on so many levels!

«I think I'm going to be sick. » Why did mental images exist? They were officially banned in Australian territories starting today.

* * *

Somewhere else in the hotel, not even that far away, Hungary's and America's good friend Japan was walking anxiously toward a certain person's room.

He had meant to come sooner, but he had been stuck with Germany and Italy. No matter how friendly he felt toward them, this was a line he was not yet ready to let people cross. He wanted to do this by himself, alone with her.

He was sure Italy would have understood perfectly, but he would have unmistakably let it escape his mouth in front of Germany sooner or later. He trusted his friends, but he knew that at this point, a single detail could be enough to shift the entire investigation process. Right now, people were suspicious of America, but it could be easy to find a new target for that mistrust. Kiku Honda did not have it in him to voluntarily put his sister through such a trial. Someone suspected of being a nation killer faced great problems. The exchanges with America were already slowing down dramatically on their sides, to a dangerous level.

No, if he wasn't entirely certain that she was hiding something on this affair, he wouldn't say anything. He had betrayed her once, he wouldn't do it twice.

He knocked twice on the door and waited patiently. He was certain she had hidden in her room. She had been nowhere to be seen after the meeting Germany had called. It was as if she had fled from the conference building.

There was no answer.

«Vietnam-neesama, it is your little brother. Please answer. » He declared, knocking against the door a few more times.

There was still no answer and he was worried she might have actually gone somewhere else entirely. Unless…

…Afghanistan was not the only victim here!

«Sister! Are you alright? Please answer! » the normally timid man knocked much harder on the wooden door.

No, she couldn't be…

«Please, Lan! If you are there, answer! » he knocked harder again, not realizing he was starting to have a panic attack.

Then, just as he was about to run and call for the hotel's security, the door was shut open by a very annoyed and dark looking Vietnam.

«What's gotten into you, Kiku? Since when do you act like that? »

Blinking in surprise, the poor man suddenly felt very silly for acting like he had.

«I… » he blushed, unable to finish his sentence.

Seeing this, his sister softened a little and managed to look only slightly annoyed.

«You were worried about me? » she proposed nicely, to which Japan nodded. «Well, I am alright, I simply didn't want to see anyone today. There should be no other meetings today so I had decided to rest. I was sleeping when you started you rampage against my poor wooden door. »

«I apologize for my rudeness, sister. » the man formally bowed, still blushing of embarrassment.

«Well, now that you know I'm alright, will you let me sleep? » Vietnam pushed the issue to her advantage, her arms crossed with a little smile.

«Actually, I wanted to talk to you. May I enter? » Her smile faded around the corners.

Her expression was unreadable as she let him enter her room and that confirmed his suspicions.

She was hiding something. He needed to find out what.


	9. Iggy, you are SO clever! And sexy… What?

They stood side by side in silence. Neither wanted to initiate the conversation. They could find a strange comfort in not speaking to the other. It was much easier to keep silent, to _pretend_ that they could ignore the other's predicament and just wait until time had finally come to a stop.

Japan and Vietnam were not the most open-minded nations in the world, or the loudest.

The result was an inevitable game of patience between the two. Normally, this kind of contest could last for a while, but Vietnam didn't have this kind of patience in her now.

«Well? What do you want, little brother? » She turned to him, hiding a deep anxiousness under her seemingly normal expression. Her brother's eyes felt like they were burning her skin. Every glance he shot her way was a torture.

«I… » The Japanese started, trying to stop his emotion from reaching his voice. «I noticed that you seem alarmed ever since the discovery of Afghanistan's body. »

He was not looking away, his gaze was locked into hers and he would not give in now. Vietnam looked down, dodging the inquisitorial look on Japan's face.

For a split second, the poor woman wanted to laugh. Under that politeness of his, her little Kiku was just as intense as anyone else, more than a lot of nations' gave him credit (or blame him) for. It was cute that he was that worried about her, the thought warmed her, but she had sworn that cuteness would never appeal to her again. Quite unwillingly, Japan had just reminded his sister of her worst memories.

Deeply unsettled by the persistent silence, the Japanese stared at Vietnam with increasing worry.

«Oh, is this really surprising? » She asked, finally looking at him in the eyes again. Her gaze was of pure determination once more, a gaze she usually reserved for Korea's antics. «A nation was killed, little brother. I am more concerned by the ones that are not affected by it the slightest, Russia for example. »

«Russia-san does not seem to mind the event, I agree. However, it is perfectly normal for one like him. » Japan opposed, firmly resolved not to let her changed the topic of their conversation. «My concern goes to you, sister. »

«I told you I'm fine, Kiku. I am a bit shaken by a really unusual event, that's all there is to it. » She shrugged, her voice turning carefree.

It sounded wrong to his ears, but only because it was a tone he could not remember hearing her use.

«Very well, sister. I will follow your wish. » He said, standing up to leave.

He tried to ignore the relief that painted itself on Vietnam's face, but he couldn't. Just as he was about to reach the door, he decided to try one last time.

«Lan. » He called, instantly getting her attention (and perhaps her fear) by using her first name. «You are among the list of suspects for the crime of killing Afghanistan. I am very sorry. » Kiku finished with a resolute tone, earning a gasp of horror from her.

His hand was on the doorknob when he heard her ask him to wait. Slowly, he turned toward his sister, who had stood up from the bed and was halfway between her former position and him.

Her eyes firmly locked on the ground, her hands shaking, she whispered with a voice that broke Japan's heart.

«America. It's because it's America. »

And she pushed him out of the room, leaving him alone to process this confidence as he stared at the locked door.

He could barely hear it, the moment she let her back slide against the door and curled up on herself to cry.

* * *

England was too careless. To think the man would be so stupid as to isolate himself in the conference building… laughable. Really, he still couldn't accept how much power he had lost over the years. He was in pure denial.

Not that it would save him now. It was too late to stop the silhouette crawling behind him. Staring at a computer screen, apparently looking up for some information on the Net, he was too absorbed by his task to react until it was too late.

«Ah, _l'Angleterre_, you are so tense. » France draped both arms around his prey's neck in what he liked to call a loving embrace, but really, that was just his way of invading personal space without invitation.

«Oh, shut up, frog. This is not the time for one of your stupid games. » Arthur hissed, managing to keep a straight face and his cheeks mostly normal.

«Oh, but _mon cher_, you were not so cold last night… or the night before that. » Francis whispered into his lover's ears.

If anyone got wind of that – and he meant ANYONE – then he might as well find the nicest hole to go die into… or he could find out the true killer and ask that nation to do him the favor of killing him.

Of course, that would have been more convincing if Arthur had actually asked Francis to let go of him that instant like he used to instead of just going with it.

«Shut up and tell me why you are here. » The «gentleman» inquired, his tone a bit sharp.

«Ah, you wound me, Arthur. What reason could I possibly have to come here if not to see you? » The Frenchman backed away, a hand on his heart. Frankly, Arthur thought he was way too overdramatic to be taken seriously. If, for instance, he had said in normally, England MAY, let's put the emphasis on that, have felt a little guilty over his sharpness.

«Speak up, Francis. I know you are not as stupid as you let on. » Arthur admitted, knowing that this would get his lover to talk. Sure enough, France dropped out the act of the overdramatic lover and displayed a smug smile.

«Ah, dear, you know me too well. I know you will be the death of me someday. » That was a statement that Arthur could wholeheartedly agree to. Now, just because they spent some nights together didn't mean he could tolerate the man's antics better.

Seeing as England was not going to dignify him with a reply, Francis leaned in on him again and whispered to his ears. That got Arthur to blush a little more, making France grin happily.

«I've heard a rumor that you've been awfully cold to little Alfred yesterday. The poor boy is quite angry at you now. » As he talked, he started drawing little circles on his lover's back with his fingers.

«You frog… » Arthur sighed. «I just praised you for your intelligence. Can't you do anything that is not contradicting me? »

«Ah, but you know that is what you love the most about me. » He purred.

True, there was something unruly about Francis that kept making him guessing and looking forward to. That was one thing he could not take from the Frenchman.

«Alright, I will tell you. » Arthur gave up, earning a superior smile from his lover. «But wipe that smile off your face, frog. »

Surprisingly, Francis listened for once. That almost made Arthur stutter, right until he realized what the man had just did.

«Frog…» He mumbled under his breath. «Let me explain it in a way that you amphibian may understand. Have you talked to Alfred ever since he was chained to the other lad? »

«No. It is a shame, but I think _l'Amérique _does not appreciate my friendliness, especially not when he is under so much pressure. » Francis complained, his tone once more theatrical.

«Watch it, frog. » Arthur warned him, frowning deeply. Yes, he knew perfectly who he was dealing with. That didn't meant he appreciated the flirting with other nations. «Anyway. Had you talked to him before you, you would have noticed he was not under a lot of pressure. »

«Really? » France asked, his tone quite skeptical.

«Really. He said that everyone would realize that it was stupid to accuse the Hero and other stupidities like that. »

«You must be joking, dear. »

«Not at all. » England said, his tone particularly harsh. «But the best part is what he told me afterward. The git said that he'd pulled through, but that he had no ideas how. » Arthur's voice raised a few octaves, indignant at the stupidity of his once prized colony.

«Oh, now I get it. » France's eyes lit up with comprehension and his expression turned sly. Once more, his arms were around his lover's body. «The boy is questioning everyone on their past alibies as we speak. »

«Well, that is a good start, I suppose. » England nodded, absent-mindedly.

«To think you would provoke him on purpose like that… Do you realize how sexy you are when you are manipulative like that? » Francis purred again, breathing into England's neck. Unfortunately, he did not get the response he wanted.

«Too bad for you, frog, but this is too important for me to overlook. » The British man declared; his eyes locked onto his computer's screen.

«What is it? » The other man looked up in curiosity.

«This is a little research I am conducting in regards to Afghanistan's most recent international affairs. And I found out some very interesting information. » England explained with a satisfied smile. Immediately, Francis leaned closer to the screen, rubbing his body against England in the process.

Arthur blushed deeply, but that didn't stop him.

«I, of course, found the usual, some treaties, some contracts, a few scandals too. There had also been quite a number of negotiations between… »

«Matthieu. » Francis answered with a frown. Truly, he did not understand how England could keep forgetting about his adorable son so often. Unfortunately, he was not the only one. If he was right, Prussia may have been one of the only nations in the world that did not forgot him at least once.

«Right. » The former empire replied, having the decency to look ashamed. « It seems that the young lad wanted to find some sort of agreement with Afghanistan and stop that war. It says here that the negotiations failed early, due to a disagreement between two influential political figures of both the American and the Afghan governments. »

«_L'Amérique et Afghanistan,_ of course. Those two never managed to remain civil toward one another after 2001. » Francis sighed.

«Yes, but maybe that was not just them. That Anderson lady seems quite keen on political opinion and she may have calculated something to her advantage in that meeting. However, what is really interesting is this, look at this title. » He pointed to a headline of one obscure newspaper that looked like it came from Asia.

«A new economical accord passed between Afghanistan and Vietnam? » Francis read out loud, incredulous.

«This dates to a month ago; precisely one day after the location of our current world meeting was decided. Curious coincidence, isn't it? » England added for extra effect.

«So you think Vietnam may have something to do with this? » Francis wondered, a bit pale at the stone dropping in his stomach.

His little _fleur_ would not do something so cruel, would she? She had been such a nice girl when he had first met her. He had fought for the right to stay with her… to no avail…

«Maybe. » Arthur said. «But maybe not. You see, I am very concerned about something. The one that was framed was Alfred. Was it out of a true desire for vengeance or was he a simple scapegoat? »

«Hum… what do you think? » Francis asked, his arms now crossed over his chest.

«I suspect that it is the former. You see, I believe that this was a vengeance aimed at America, but the vengeance in itself was just a bonus. » England pondered, his tone clearly letting some of his concern appear.

«What do you mean? » France hesitated, still under the effect of his earlier revelations.

«We are facing a recession, Francis, the whole world is. This is hard to ignore. This may be one of the reason Alfred cannot end his war with Afghanistan like that. It was always suspected that his government wanted a better control of the oil industry. » Arthur continued his explanation, this time his tone seeming a little condescending toward Francis. It made him sound like a detective in one of his old novels. «But what if that was someone else's goal? »

His lover jumped in surprise.

«Who? » he muttered, his voice low enough to be a whisper.

«I wouldn't have known if not for this article that was published just this morning. » He admitted, clicking on a link that led them to another local newspaper.

«I cannot read this, Arthur. » France frowned at the unknowns symbols.

«I suspected this would be the case so here is the translation. » England simply showed another page.

«Is this your e-mail address, Arthur? » The Frenchman could not help but ask.

«It is. I asked to some members of my government to translate that page for me and show me its content. Here is what they sent me. » He presented an image that was clearly the other page, only heavily pampered with translations notes.

«That's… » France paled.

«Indeed. This explains that quite a few of Afghanistan's most productive oil companies were bought by foreign businessmen. The most of which were Russians. »

«_Russia_ I being this? » Francis exclaimed, his voice faltering because of the panic.

«Calm down, you frog. I'm not done yet. » England ordered, stopping the other dead in his track. «There is more to this than meets the eyes. Yes, perhaps Russia heard about this new agreement that Vietnam and Afghanistan passed to each other while he had been denied the same thing a few times I think. Perhaps this is the reason he assassinated Afghanistan, to get what Vietnam may have received. However, there is also the fact that Vietnam has not lost anything with the recent events. If her government acts now, it is possible that it could get even better advantages than before. In that regards, maybe someone is trying to help Vietnam. »

«But wouldn't this method be a little extreme? After all, the one that would do such a thing risks his life and his country's stability to help another nation. » Francis frowned.

«You are right, which leads me to believe that Vietnam could be the culprit herself and that she is using Russia's greed to cover her actions. »

Francis was rarely speechless, always one to imply something lewd or teasing, but against such a serious Arthur and such disturbing data, he was.

«Now, the best thing would be to find out if Russia came in contact with her after the crime. » England finished, his mind seemingly elsewhere, a fact that his lover did not fail to see.

«_Mon cher_? What are you hiding? »

«…there is just one big problem with my theories… » He acknowledged, unsure of what to think.

«Which is? » Francis pressed the issue and his body against his lover at the same time.

«I said that _most_ buyers were Russians… the rest are Americans. »

There was one perfectly appropriate answer to that and Francis was one to look for perfection.

«_Merde_! »

* * *

_He was not his usual self. Nowadays, he never was and it saddened her. _

_Gone were the smiles, the grins, the childish laugher and the Heroic rants. All of that had been replaced by nervousness, doubts, fear, aggressively and darkness. Alfred had changed. _

_And it frightened her so much._

_«L-Lan? » he called from her living room. _

_He had come for a visit, saying he needed a rest from that agitation at home. Russia was apparently driving him crazy. She could see that all too well. _

_«I… I don't know how long I can go on… » he confessed, seemingly about to cry. _

_How broken he was by this. She could do so little to help him. _

_«Alfred… » She hugged him in a tight embrace, in which he let go of his worries. _

_«Everywhere I look… I see the damn commie's influence… everywhere… » he sobbed in her arms, not realizing that he had caused her eyes to shut open in surprise. _

Don't react…

_«A-Alfred? Have you said «commie»? » She asked hesitantly._

_«Yeah… Russia's a big commie bastard… just like every other commie. » He sniffled, trying to regain a little bit of dignity in front of her. _

Forget that…

_«Alfred… » she started, too stunned to think about what she was doing._

Shut up! Don't tell him!

_«You do know that the northern half of my country is communist, don't you? » _

WHY DID YOU HAVE TO TELL HIM?

_At that very instant, as soon as the words may their way into America's brain, she saw the profound disbelief paint itself on his usually cheerful face. _

_«Wha-? » His voice cracked as his eyes widened. _

_«Alfred? » Vietnam asked, realizing she might have made the biggest mistake of her life. _

_The boy didn't answer. He ran a hand through his hair, hiding his face as he looked to the sky. He looked unbelievably shaken, but he didn't utter a word. _

_«Alfred? » Lan pressed, worried out of her mind. _

_When he finally looked back at her, he appeared as a stranger to her. _

_«So you're his, huh? » he spat with venom that made her move back in shock. _

_«What are you talking about? » This time, she had no idea of what to say. She couldn't understand him anymore. _

_«You reported everything I told you to him, didn't you? » His eyes were not the usual blue. It was no longer the ocean she could see in them, only the darkest part of the abysses._

_«No! Alfred, why do you say that? I love you! » It sounded so much like pleading, he could not have ignored that. _

_Because she was actually pleading. It had been so long since Lan had been happy, since _someone _had made her that happy! Was it all going to end because of a portion of her people? _

_«No! It's impossible! If you loved me, you wouldn't be a commie! » He shouted, silencing her. _

_Her eyes filled with tears. No. No, that couldn't be it…_

_«I'm out of here. » He glared at her one last time, ignoring her desperate whispers and the sorrow that was leaking out of her eyes. _

_He was gone. _

He had returned, but not alone this time. He came back with troops. He wanted to eliminate the part of her that was communist. He wanted to kill what was corrupting her as he once said.

He had killed.

He had caused her so much pain.

He had broken her hearts.

On the floor, Vietnam was crying, trapped inside the memories that haunted her. She could not live with that much pain. She had tried to forget, as her brother would tell her.

But the world meetings had started, meaning she had to see him. She could not ignore him; he was always putting himself in the front, torturing her endlessly.

Vietnam had never known if their separation had given such a long lasting scar on Alfred's mind, but she didn't care. It was too painful to see the very same boy that had slipped into her heart and then left her so cruelly years after years, exactly the same as when they first met, as if there had never been anything between the two of them.

She could not take it much longer. Vietnam's tears dried up.

She didn't want his love back; she had sworn on everything that made her herself that she would never fall in love again, no matter what. She wanted something else.

She wanted him gone.


	10. Okay, I was NOT expecting that

«Here, America, you can have your cellphone back. » Germany said, very formal, even with Feliciano clinging to his shoulder.

«Thanks man! I bet there wasn't anything wrong with it, right? » Alfred brightly took the object.

«No, indeed, there was not a single incriminating fact that could be pinpointed by this. The last contact you have had with Afghanistan through a cellphone happened one month ago, when you tried to negotiate with him. » The German admitted, graciously.

«I told you so! » The Hero grinned, happy that the suspicions would drop significantly with that. He had told Iggy, everything would be back in place in no time.

«The same goes for you, Australia. » He continued, handing over another cellphone.

«Thanks mate. » The tan man replied a bit fast. He, too, was excited by that new. People couldn't carelessly put the blame on Alfred all of a sudden now.

«Well, that shall be all for me today, I've contacted every country one by one to give them back the belongings that they had lent the investigators. » He concluded.

«But, Doitsu, you still have another one. » Italy pointed at the bulge in his good friend's pocket.

«Hum… that's curious. » The blonde man took out the extra phone and examined it, not sure of how he had come to have one more phone than what he started with. «Well, it matters not. If I really forgot someone, that person can always come and find me. »

And with that, he left, dragging Italy with him. However, the third member of the Axis trio stayed behind, taking place in front of both America and Australia.

«Australia-san, America-san. » He started with a small, respectful bow that was met by a grin and a bear hug.

«Kiku! Why are you also so formal? We're friends, dude! Loosen up! » Alfred said with a smile, barely restraining from giving the other a noodgie.

«A-America-san! » The poor Japanese man flustered in the other's grip. «P-please let go of me. I-I have something important to talk about! »

«Okay, that's enough, Al. He can't breathe properly. » Jack pulled on his chained arm, making the American loosen his iron grip.

«Huh? » Alfred blinked. «Why are you saying that? »

«'Cause Japan is all red. Look at his face. » Jack explained with a grin, pointing at the man that now wanted to die in a hole. There was no way that anyone would believe it was the lack of air that did that.

«Oh, sorry man, I didn't notice. » Alfred let go, sounding a little sheepish. «You okay, Kiku? »

Well, anyone _beside_ America, apparently.

Thanking his lucky star, Japan took a minute to calm down his frantic heartbeat and straighten out his clothes ruffled by Alfred's hug. When he was ready to avoid Jack's playful looks or his American friend's innocent smile, he looked up and talked with a very formal tone.

«America-san, I am alright. I was surprised, that is all. » He began, trying to read the other two's moods. «The reason I waited until Germany and Italy were gone to approach you is that I wanted to ask you a favor. »

«Sure thing, Kiku. What do you want? » Alfred instantly replied, taking Australia by surprise. That was not exactly the wisest thing to do. Usually, someone should wait to wait what the actual favor is before agreeing, just in case it was out of your capacity.

No logic should be wasted with Alfred. Then again, who needed logic when you were a Hero and a friend of yours needed you?

«Thank you, America-san. I knew I could count on you. » Japan thanked him with a small bow.

«Anytime. » Alfred assured, flashing his Heroic grin again.

«Okay, maybe it's just me, but I'd like to know exactly what mate over her just agreed to. Care to explain, Japan? » The Aussie frowned. Sure, he was all for helping other people, but he also liked not to be kept in the dark too much.

«Of course, Australia-san. It is quite simple actually. » The Japanese graciously replied. «I am worried about a member of my family. She has not been well ever since Afghanistan's death. »

«She? » Alfred asked.

«Yes, I am talking about my older sister, Vietnam. » Japan said, ignoring the suddenly distant expression that had painted itself on Australia's face. What he did find curious was that Alfred looked barely concerned with that. Surely, he should react more when one's knew of their history together…

«Oh, Lan? Yes, what's with her? » The American asked, very casually.

It disturbed Japan, to see America shrug that off so easily, it was very uncanny. Perhaps he was not the person he needed to ask.

Except it was too late to stop.

«S-She seems… very disturbed… and she says it's because of you… » He hesitated, pausing awkwardly to find the courage to say it all. «W-would you talk to her, Alfred? »

The use of the more intimate appellation did not go unnoticed, surprisingly.

«Oh, so we're down on the human name, huh? Well, now I definitely can't say no. » The Hero grinned, ignoring the shocked look he was getting from Japan and the concerned ones from Australia. «Still, I wonder why she would think about me now… weird. »

He missed the now emotionless mask the Japanese had protected himself with, partially because that was somewhat the same as Kiku's usual look.

Not letting transpire his mental turmoil, Japan took his leave, without another word.

«Huh? He's kind of running away, isn't he? » Alfred remarked, shooting a glance at Jack.

«Well, of course he's going to run away. You just belittled the troubles that his sister his going through, which is obviously important considering he asked YOU to take care of it.» The Aussie cringed. Really, sometimes Alfred really lack that quality called «Tact».

«Oh… » Alfred said, his eyes widening as he realized his mistake. «But… why would Lan be so distressed about me? I mean, I haven't talk to her in years. Doesn't she avoid me most of the time? »

«She would, after what happened. » Jack crossed his arms… or tried at least (damn handcuffs!).

Now, the hyperactive, always cheerful young man was looking quite guilty, enough to make the Aussie regret his harsh tone.

«Err… sorry Alfred, I know those were complicated times… » Jack apologized, sighing at the obvious pain he had brought to his sort-of brother.

«Nah, it's fine. » The American brightened up, a bit too fast to be genuine.

«Well, I'm going to ignore that and pretend to just go with it. » Jack said, his gaze fixated on the other man.

«Great! Now, let's review how productive we've been today! » Alfred cheered up, raising his left arm high in the sky. For a sole reaction, he got a small grin from Australia.

«Right. We've asked pretty much anyone what they have been doing so far. The most common answer is: «I was sleeping, of course. » However, we've received a few unusual ones like Hungary's or Sweden's answers. »

«Yeah… » Alfred's smile slipped off his face. «I wish he had restrained himself when talking about his night. » At the memory, they both shuddered.

«Too much information, indeed. » Jack approved. «There's also been a few that refused to answer, notably Russia and Belarus, saying they didn't want to be bothered by a killer like you –seriously, you have no self-control Alfred, you _know_ that's what he wanted –, Switzerland, who forbid us from bothering Lichtenstein at the same time, Mexico, who slapped you and went away, Cuba, who tried to attack you, Afghanistan's brothers actually refused to TALK to you, and South Italy, who said it was none of our business. »

«Alright then, among those that have no alibis, who could want to frame the Hero? »

«Russia, definitely. He has been taming down on the hatred, but he's the most obvious suspect. » The Aussie started, frowning deeply. «Mexico and Cuba have pretty deep grudges against you too. Switzerland has a hair-trigger temper, but he doesn't have anything against you… I think. Same thing for South Italy. I don't think Afghanistan's bros would really do that to him, so they're out. »

Alfred placed a hand under his chin, trying to look more interested. He was in a serious superhero mood today.

«Hum… this is complicated. Shouldn't the villain of the story appears with a big explosion and then the hero can start to kick his ass? » America wondered, surprised at how the events were turning out.

Oh, and scratch that serious thing.

«Al, come on! Even you can't be that delusional _all the time_. » Jack whacked the back of his head. All it did was make Alfred grin stupidly.

«What? What is delusional with wanting a grand showdown with laser beams and cheerleaders? » He asked, as if that was the most sensitive and intelligent thing to say.

«I'm not against the cheerleaders part, but… considering it's you we're talking about… yes, that's delusional. » Jack gave him his best smug smile.

«What is that supposed to mean? » Alfred exclaimed, a bit more high pitched than it was supposed to come out, oops. The fact that the Aussie poked him on the stomach only made his indignation rise higher.

«You're pudgy, Al. » He slid on his shades on his face, showing how much cooler he was. After all, he dealt with the Lord of Darkness every day and never had any trouble with it.

«That's it! No one mocks the athletic body of the Hero and lives to tell the tale! » Alfred lunged on his bro, ignoring the enormous grins that they were both wearing.

The ensuing fight for the title of coolest guy and biggest scone eater then happened, the details of which are too dangerous for the human mind to be revealed casually.

* * *

«So much for those two getting along well. » Francis smirked to an exasperated England.

«Oh, frog, won't you just shut up at least five minutes? » The British gentleman sighed, so very tired of this kind of stupidity. The two lads had started a mocked fight in the corridor of the conference building! A place where the world's leaders met!

Where did their education went _so_ wrong? Where?

«Children… they are still little children after hundreds of years… » The poor man shook his head left and right, in an attempt to reject the report he had been given by his lover.

«Oh, but _mon cher_, they are such vigorous young men, they have to let it out somehow. » He said, wiggling his eyebrows in a very unsubtle matter.

Of course, that earned him a punch he graciously dodged.

«Seriously, is there nothing ELSE on your mind? At all? » Arthur asked in mock disbelief. That had been lost a long time ago.

«Of course, there is _l'amour_ too, Arthur. » he slid his way to the Englishman's side. The poor man sighed. The day he had accepted to go out with him had been quite a mistake. Then again, he could not deny how much happier he had secretly been.

«Better letting it out on a friend than on an enemy, don't you think? Especially these days. » The Frenchman once more let Arthur get a glimpse of his intelligence.

Francis was not to be underestimated. He had won quite a few wars and showed how much cunning he could be, if he so much had the motivation for it. He was perverted, but people often forgot there was more to him than that.

«You are right. » That left him with the impression his throat was going to start _bleeding_. Quick! Insulting him should make it much better. «Though a frog like you could use this advice as well. »

The Frenchman purred into his ears and made his lover flinch slightly. Was he a cat?

«Jealousy is an ugly thing, _l'Angleterre._ » France let go of him, seeing as other nations were arriving at the conference room.

«Adultery is just as bad in my book, frog. » England sneered before going to his seat, which, thankfully, was far from the annoying Frenchman's own chair. Francis only let out a simple smile, though his cunning did not leave his eyes just yet.

* * *

The meeting had started uneventfully. No new information had been discovered concerning Afghanistan's murderer and the nations were quite uneasy. Germany, however, refused to let this matter disturb the reunions, as they were important enough to overlook such a thing, for a few hours at least.

He had been the one to start the discussion, going on things that now appeared trivial to the most nervous nations. If one person in that room was a killer, then they'd rather stay on their guards, in case they were next.

And America found himself surrounded by a great void. Jack was still by his side, of course, but other than him… there weren't anyone. The closest person was Greece, four seats to his left, who was idly sleeping through the whole thing. If he was not so often glanced at by the rest of the nations, he would have done the same. This meeting was reaching records in terms of uselessness. What was the point of all these exchanges in their boss were not working on it as well? The week off requested by the Afghan government was not over yet.

One nation however had caught Alfred's attention: Vietnam. Quiet, like always, she was fixated on the German speaking, as if resolved not to let her surroundings affect her, the Hero included.

On the exterior, she looked strong, but some details did not escape the normally obnoxious American. For example, her cheeks seemed to be glistening slightly, traces of the tears that had fallen down on them. To see such a thing oddly made Alfred's stomach tighten.

It was odd. He had been the one to end their relationship, yet… he felt remains of love in him toward her. She had truly been a good person and a loving girlfriend.

He hid his face under the pretense of massaging his forehead, which fooled only the ones that didn't know him. Jack pretended not to feel the chain shake on his arm, nor to pay any attention to the trembling chin on his friend's face.

It had been a shock. To find out there were communists in her… It was as if she had betrayed him, as if every smile and every tender word had been a lie. He was at war with them… and she was a part of it.

At that time, he did the only thing he could: he rejected her. He had heard sweet words before, from his father figure mostly, and he knew those could cut through his heart if he so much listened.

So he left, feeling an anger that burned through his veins and left nothing but a desire to destroy.

Why did Kiku have to ask him to talk to her? He was not suited for that task!

Things in the conference room dragged on for a while, before Germany, seeing how distracted his audience was (which was not new, but it had reached extreme levels), he decided to call a ten minutes break in order for everyone to clear their minds.

Judging by the look he received from Japan, it was time. Already, she was moving toward the door, not wanting to interact with anyone. If he was to help his friend, it was now or never.

«Let's go, Jack. » He stood up, imitated by the Aussie.

Ignoring the few looks he got from some of the nations that had not yet decided if they should leave or not, they went toward the Asian nation.

«Lan! » Alfred called loudly, instantly getting the attention of the other nations, but most importantly, getting Vietnam to freeze in shock.

«W-what did you call me? » she asked, her body stiff as if carved in ice. That was the first warning.

«Lan, why? » He instantly replied, completely missing the point of her question.

«Don't call me that. » She whispered, her body trembling slightly.

«Huh? » The American exclaimed, before Jack could stop him from poisoning the situation.

Every eye was on the three of them now. Everyone could see the visible efforts Vietnam was making in an attempt to keep some self-control. It was not hard to see how close she was to failing either.

«I asked you not to call me Lan. For you, it's Vietnam. » She hissed between her teeth.

Really, Jack should have known better than letting Alfred talk more than that…

«Gee, what's gotten into you? » He frowned, displeased by the rude behavior. He was only there to help…

Those words were the only ones, _the_ _only ones_, she could not ignore.

She turned around to face him, to truly face him, her face distorted by rage.

«What's gotten into ME? I'll tell you what's gotten into me: _you! _YOU AND YOUR STUPID FAKE HEROISM! »

A deafening silence fell on the room.

«My WHAT? »

«Mate… » Jack pleaded, praying it was not too late.

«Your fake heroism. » She looked about to jump on him and beat him senseless, which should not be too far from the truth. «While you spew that nonsense every time you open your mouth, you fail to notice that NOBODY thinks you're a hero! »

«That's not true! » He yelled, just as angry as she was.

«Look around you. » She opened her arms wide, gesturing him to turn around, just to see the fear and the tension that had taken a hold in the room. It was directed at him, it was all directed toward the Hero.

But that's not how you look at the Hero who saves the day, right?

«Y-you don't think like her… d-do you? » Alfred asked, his voice suddenly wavering.

And he could see it on their faces, ranging from the pure hatred to the stern lack of care to the shivering fear.

A warm hand found its way on his shoulder, giving him a much needed support in the person of Australia. For a second, he wanted to hug him to death… but Vietnam was far from done.

«See? I am right, you are nothing like a hero. You never did any good to _anyone_! Not even to me! » She continued, her voice reaching higher as her wrath grew, finally being unleashed on the one that deserved it so much!

«I try my hardest to help you! » He protested, though even to him that sounded weak.

«You tried? You _tried_? » She screeched, making many flinched. «You didn't try to help me, America! You killed my citizens! You declared war on me! You tried to crush anything that was communist in me! When my people were offered the choice, _you rigged the votes!_ » She could not help it, her tears kept falling, no matter how hard she was holding them back.

He was completely silent. He knew it was false, that he was the Hero, but why did the words refuse to come out?

«I hate you, America. We were lovers, yet you went at war with me. You said you wanted to help me and you massacred my people. The second you heard a part of me was communist, you cut all ties with me. There is nothing heroic about you. » Her eyes had changed, they were empty. Empty orbs of numb pain.

«I WAS AT WAR! FOR YEARS! » Alfred finally found his voice and it was a dreadful accusation. «YOU KNEW I WAS FIGHTING COMMUNISTS FOR HALF A DECADE YET YOU NEVER TOLD ME! »

The Asian woman stopped, taken aback by his ferocity.

«Every time I came back, you could have told me! Instead, you just told me to let go of my worries, to enjoy our time together. I was telling you everything, yet you never dare to share a single thing about you! Every time I tried to know you better, you would just fall silent and refuse to speak! WHAT WAS I SUPPOSED TO THINK WHEN I FOUND OUT YOUR PEOPLE WERE THE VERY THING I WAS FIGHTING AGAINST! »

«Talk to me! Listen to me! YOU LEFT IN THE SPACE OF A MINUTE AND WE NEVER SPOKE AGAIN AFTERWARD! »

Silence returned, thicker and heavier than ever. An uneventful day this was going to be, some had foolishly thought, they had been so very wrong.

The verbal match between the two nations seemed to have taken a great deal of emotion and energy from them, as they were both breathing more heavily than usual and they seemed reluctant to continue.

«I… I used to love you, but now… when I look at you, it's only disgust. »

With that, she turned away and left the conference room, leaving America to his own pain. No one followed her.

* * *

That night, Alfred dreamt of war and death.

_People running away from him, screaming in fear. _

_People begging for their lives._

_People giving their last breath to let their loved ones live… just a little longer. _

NOBODY thinks you're a hero! … Look around you…

_And they are there, everyone, accusing him. Their faces are covered with blood and they keep asking why, they keep asking him for his reasons. _

_«Why did you kill us? » _

_«What have we done to you?» _

_He wants to explain, to tell them the truth. Why can't he find anything to say? He tries and he tries and he tries… but no sounds come out of his throat. _

_He hears the sound of his own weapon going off. _

_And they run away in fear. _

_«Don't worry. » A little boy says to a baby he's carrying. He looks barely six years old, but his tired expression shows how little hope he has left. Yet he smiles… _

_Yet he smiles… «I know a hero will save us! »_

«NO! » Alfred jolted awake on his bed, scaring the life out of Jack.

«What? » The poor Aussie glanced around rapidly, trying to find a threat in the hotel room.

It was peacefully empty, with the exception of his koala, sleeping on the couch. Australia frowned, that couldn't be the reason Alfred had screamed, right?

«What is it, mate? » He asked to the panting American, rubbing his eyes and trying not to fall asleep on him.

«A… a nightmare… » Alfred muttered, eyes wide. «It was just… a nightmare… »

_«A hero will save us…»_

«Alfred? W-what did you dream of? You're crying! » Jack straightened, perfectly awake.

Before he could answer, someone knocked three times on the door.

Both of them glanced at the door before looking at the clock. It was barely five in the morning. Who could have any business with them this early?

Ignoring their doubts, they dressed up, at least to be decent, and went to answer.

Germany was waiting, wearing only his black t-shirt and his boxers, sign that he had also been woken up just recently. This time, he was not accompanied by Feliciano or Japan, but by Russia.

This did not bode well, not a little bit, in Jack's mind.

«What is it? Why are you here so early? » He asked, speaking for the American.

One thing that was the same as usual was Russia's creepy childish smile. It was as if he was not affected at all by this turn of event. Though, if you looked closely, there was something different about it, this time...

Then again, Germany's scowl was the same as usual, if only a bit tighter.

«Vietnam is dead. Her throat has been cut open during the night. »


	11. Kiku, I never wanted to see you cry

The atmosphere was heavy, even when the nations were wearing only whatever they had fallen asleep in (with the exception of Francis, knowing him it was obvious that his current clothing was much more than what he had fallen asleep in). There was something tragic with the idea that a Mattie wearing polar bear patterned boxer or that a French maid uniform wearing Korea were not funny.

Not that Alfred felt like laughing.

Staring blankly at the body on the floor, he was far from any emotion remotely close to joy, happiness, peace of mind, ease. Similarly, the images flashing before his eyes were either a moment of intimacy shared with her or her pleas and insults. Both felt like a knife stabbing his heart, not that he could tell which were the most painful.

But even he could not deny that his pain was nothing, absolutely nothing, in comparison to the Asian nations surrounding her.

Im Yonsoo was openly crying, whispering his sister's name over and over, was gazing blankly at the corpse, his face carved in stone, and Kiku…

Neither Germany nor Italy could remember ever seeing such intensity on his pale, ever stoic, face.

«I swear… » he whispered. «I swear on your memory that I will find the killer. I swear that I will bring that monster to justice. No matter who it is, that nation will pay… » He was clenching his knuckles so hard that they were past white and, in a flash, he glanced at America.

The gesture hurt more than Alfred wanted to admit. To know that even Japan would doubt him… he had to harden his resolve not to cry on the spot. It was a terrible thing, to see a person you once loved dead and the blame shifted to you by a friend.

_NOBODY thinks you're a hero!_

«Stay strong… » he heard Jack whisper to him and suddenly, Alfred felt like hugging him with all his strength, but they were not alone. He was supposed to be strong, to be everyone's Hero, the one that every nation looked up to in times of…

To hell with the other nations looking, he didn't care!

Jack suddenly felt the life being squeezed out of him, along with his bones getting just a little bit crushed into oblivion. He didn't voice any objection though, for his very confused and hurt brother had buried his face into his shoulder.

«How strange. » Someone said, getting most of the attention in the room. «Poor Vietnam had just insulted America and now she's dead… curious, da? » A tall man with white hair wondered out loud. Dreadfully quick, Kiku turned and glared at him so ferociously that a shiver went through the other nations.

«Do not… talk so… casually… of my sister! » The Japanese all but gnarled at Russia. His hands were inches away from his katana and the threat that emanated from him was enough to make the Russian's smile falter slightly.

«You shouldn't act so threatening, Japan. It may not be good for your health, you understand, da? » His expression was childish, yet hid something off…

«I hope you did not suggest what I think you did. » The black-haired man walked up to him, earning a cringe from most. Even Korea stopped whispering, looking at his brother through his tears.

«Kiku? » The normally energetic young man called, without success.

«And what if I did? » Russia asked, his tone cold.

«We know for a fact that a nation killer is on the loose and we do not have hints so far. » Japan explained, his voice back to normal, but, by the way he clung to his sword, it was just a front.

«Ah, but America is obviously the criminal. » The Russian said, glancing at Alfred, who glared in return. Quite frankly, he was seriously considering forgetting everyone's opinion, not like he really wanted to bother in the first place. Ivan was going too far. Taunting him was game, they both hated each other. Suggesting he was a murderer was a pretty cringe worthy move and he was such a nice guy not to have broken the other's ribs already, but _crashing someone's mourning time_ was going WAY too far!

«No. » Japan's voice was so calm that many twitched in surprise. «I am regularly reporting with the people doing the investigation and there is no definite proof that America is the criminal. » Alfred jumped in surprise. «The investigation is still in progress and your attitude definitely ticks me off. For all I know, you could very be _the killer himself_. »

Those around him could tell, the temperature dropped by a few degrees.

«Don't go around making baseless accusations like that, Japan. It makes you look crazy.» The Russian recommended.

«They are not baseless. » Kiku replied, his shoulders stiff with the tension. «You are acting in a curious way and you have showed absolutely no evidence to counter my theory. »

Among the nations, few had not lost their voices in surprise or fear. Things didn't go much better when they noticed the slight twitching on Russia's cheeks as he forced his typical smile on his face.

The tension rose higher and higher with each passing seconds. It was a matter of time now before Russia exploded and tried to kill everyone.

To everyone's surprise, the tall man turned away, ignoring the smaller black-haired nation, and left the scene without another word.

As soon as Russia left, Japan turned back to his sister's body, his face stern. Kneeing next to her, he closed her eyes tenderly and Vietnam's expression looked peaceful.

After all this time, she was finally free of her pain.

* * *

Everyone left soon afterward, under little pressure from Germany. The blonde man obviously wanted to give his friend some time to himself with his grief and it took no detective to see that he would not leave his sister's corpse.

«Hum… Kiku…? », a faltering voice echoed to his ears. Turning slightly, the Japanese caught a glimpse of a very uneasy American.

«America-san? » he called, sounding more surprised than angry.

«Look, hum… » He was going against the voice of reason in his head as he talked, but he felt very deeply that he _had_ to talk to his friend, now or never. «I know you probably want some time to yourself and I totally understand that and… » He was being careful. He refused to hurt Kiku, no matter what the other may think.

Understanding, his black-haired friend waited for him to find the right words and Jack simply patted him, an encouraging expression on his face.

«I'm here for you, man! I… I'd understand if you didn't want to see me or even if you think it's my fault, b-but I _swear_! I never wanted anything bad to happen to Lan! » He cried out, desperate not to see it, not to see the moment his friend's face would suddenly turn to anger and disgust and tell him to disappear.

Japan's head lowered and he stayed silent.

«K-Kiku… » Alfred whispered, feeling something starting to break inside him.

«I believe you. », was the other's simple answer.

Alfred froze.

«I do not believe that you are the killer, Alfred. » He finally looked up, his gaze lock into his friend's ocean blue eyes. America flinched and his own pain melted like ice on Jack's skin and turn into a compassion that overwhelmed him. He saw something he never thought he'd see in his whole life.

Kiku Honda, aka Japan, the most stoic man on Earth, was on the verge of tears.

His first, truest and most immediate response was to give the poor nation a surprisingly gentle hug.

«Sister… » He whispered, over and over again.

* * *

His room was dark, but that did not bother him. Quite honestly, there was one thing that bothered him a great deal, but that was miles away from a lack of proper light.

Then again, to say that it bothered him was an understatement. It was literally eating his mind!

«What happens to a country when its nation dies? » someone had asked him.

Who? Who? Just who had asked him that?

«You know… how are things for the people when the nation dies on its own or because of something unpredictable? » The untraceable voice echoed, again and again. Each time, the feeling that a tone of amusement was underneath grew stronger and stronger.

_«What happens… » _

Why had he gone and forgotten that?

_«… to a country… »_

And yet the answer was almost there, he could feel it on the corner of his mind, waiting for the right time to appear.

_«... you know… » _

Did that sound like a woman?

_«… dies on its own… » _

No, that was a man!

_«…something unpredictable… »_

Wait! He wasn't sure anymore!

_«…dies… dies on its own… »_

The images brutally disappeared, leaving him nothing but the lingering echoes of the voice.

_«…dies… because something unpredictable happens… »_

_«I'm telling you, sister. You should not live so much in your memories. Why don't you listen to the advices of your honorable brother? » his own voice took over his remembrance. _

_«Because, «honorable brother», it is what makes me myself. What else defines us, Oh Great Wang Yao, if not for our history? Unlike humans, we cannot define ourselves through our bonds, through our families, since we are a kind that is without parents. » There was a small, somewhat sly, smile on her face as she turned toward China._

_«So you insist on being unhappy? » He exclaimed, unable to stop himself in time. Her smile did tone down and her eyes shined of a certain sorrow, but there was also something beautiful about it. _

_«I'd rather be unhappy than forget the reason of my unhappiness. Unlike you, brother, I know that my life cannot be known only through the moments I cherish. To be myself, Lan Yao, the woman that represents Vietnam, I am ready to face the dark times I have lived before, even if I am doomed to unhappiness. Otherwise, I know that, one day, I will see only emptiness. »_

He had left her, shocked, perhaps even disturbed, by her speech. It was the first time he had doubted so much of his way of dealing with hardships.

_«…dies… »_

A single word passed through his lips.

«Lan… »

Today, there truly was nothing but emptiness.

* * *

«I apologize, Alfred-san. I burdened you with my own emotions. » Kiku awkwardly distanced himself from his friend, his cheeks red.

«What? No way, Kiku! Don't apologize because you're sad! » He had such a look of disbelief on his face that he had to fight the urge to scoff.

«He's right, mate. You don't have to be ashamed of that. » Jack's voice made them jump. «You did not forget I was here, did you? » His voice came again, this time skeptical, from the ground.

It appeared that in his rush, Alfred had thrown the Aussie off his feet and he had been too touched by the display to say anything. It was all well and good, but now that they were done, he'd like to be able to stand again.

If anything, Kiku's blush deepened further. He hadn't meant to do that at all and even less in front of someone who was essentially a stranger.

When he turned to him with the full intent to apologize for his rudeness, he caught a glimpse of Vietnam's body and his words refused to come out.

Instantly, the atmosphere of the room became heavy again, though, this time, it felt so much more painful. Japan's face tightened and took the appearance of a mask of pain.

Alfred felt his throat dry up, just as he wanted to talk.

«D-do you want us to… to s-stay with you? » His voice came weakly, so different from its usual strength.

«No… I would… I would prefer to be left alone, Alfred-san. » He whispered, his eyes going to the floor.

Without another word, Alfred and Jack left.

* * *

Ukraine's face was very pale. Not a minute ago, her dear brother had refused to let her enter. His eyes had this dangerous light that she hated so much when he answered her calls. It had dimmed to an imperceptible level as soon as he realized who he was talking to, but Katyusha was not so naïve as to think it was gone.

Unlike most nations thought, her brother was very aware of his own darkness and he tried to control it. While it looked that he was simply insane, she knew it was more sinister and much sadder than that.

He tried and failed.

Neither nations were thinking the other did not realize what truly happened then, but they pretended, less they start arguing.

Ukraine had wanted to comfort him, to talk to him, exactly like they did before… that time, and he, in a rare display of anger toward her, had replied that he was not a kid anymore and slammed the door.

The sheer unexpectedness of the action had taken her aback. Her eyes were humid now, but she did her best not to display what everyone told her was a weakness.

Sometimes, she wondered why everyone considered crying a weakness while bottling pain up was a show of strength. Was she the only one concerned about the explosions that were bound to happen one day?

* * *

The night went on without any other disturbance, yet none found the blessing of sleep.

Vietnam had been killed in her own bedroom, during the middle of the night apparently. Guilty minds, pensive individuals and terrified nations, none allowed for some time to rest.

America was restless. Even though Jack had argued that tomorrow would likely be a very exhausting day, even though that had sounded very logical and even though he had seen the genuine light of worry in the Aussie's eyes, he just couldn't find it in him to relax. Her accusations echoed tenfold to his ears now.

Every single time he closed his eyes, thousands and thousands of her people were staring at him blankly.

_«Who are you?» They asked. _

_«The Hero! » He replied._

_«Who are you? » They asked again. A chill crept onto Alfred's skin. _

_«I… I'm the United States of America, this world's Hero. » He tried, a strange feeling making him shiver._

_«Who are you? » They asked once more. This time, there was an intangible threat to these words._

_«What are you talking about? Don't you understand? I'm Alfred F. Jones! I'm the United States of America! I am the HERO! » He shouted, as if that would make them understand better._

_It seemed like they were uneasy with what he said. Unspoken words traveled through the masses of bodies, as they suddenly died, screaming in pure agony._

Alfred's eyes shot open.

He was panting, his mind trying to chase away the lingering feeling of death. He felt cold, as a few drops of sweat slid down his back.

He had to shake off his fear, but it clung to his skin, as if claws were buried in his muscles.

«You had a nightmare? » Jack's voice was soft, reminding them both of Matthew.

«Yeah… » Alfred admitted, looking away.

«Was it her? » The tan man asked, though his tone implied that he needed no answer.

Slowly, Alfred nodded.

Jack's hand went through his hair and his expression shifted to one of sadness.

«It's not your fault, Al. We both know that. » He tried to smile, but he simply didn't have the enough strength to.

Without a word, the self-proclaimed Hero turned to the other side, no longer facing his brother's compassion.

The dream was gone, but its effect were lingering, a string of dangerous thoughts. Feeling colder than ever before, even in the middle of one of Mattie's snowstorms, he could see that blade of doubt that was tearing apart his illusions and his dreams.

America had declared war against Afghanistan, he had killed, now Afghanistan was dead.

America had declared war against Vietnam, he had killed, now Vietnam was dead.

_NOBODY thinks you're a hero! _

Was he really the Hero?

Alone yet with his brother, cold in a heated room, a killer though innocent, America cried.


	12. A hero's public image is important

The atmosphere during breakfast was dark. No happy chatter was exchanged this morning and scarce were the nations that spoke so much as a few words. The events of the night had left them drained and wary. Afghanistan's death was a sad and scary occurrence, but most importantly, a rare one. The youngest nations had no memory of such an event ever happening before and the oldest had been confidant that all they had to do was to wait for the killer to be discovered.

Vietnam's death changed this misconception.

It was no longer about finding a nation that had tried to gain an advantage through an assassination, it was about finding a killer that would eliminate as many nations as he or she thought necessary.

As such, Alfred found himself surrounded by suspicious eyes that followed his every move. When he stood up (and by the force of events, so did Jack), many eyed him cautiously, trying not to be noticed. Some failed miserably and they returned to their breakfast in panic, but, a few times, the American could only feel a burning sensation on his back, as if he was being stared. Once, he had jerked around, only to stare at the Nordic table, all its members eating silently, Iceland even texting with a cold look on his face.

More disturbingly, Jack was getting the same feeling. They were no longer staring at his brother alone. From Korean, he had gotten a quite vicious glare.

This kind of new attention was certainly something he would not thrive for anytime soon. As soon as that was over, he would step back again. Being under the spotlight was not something he did too often, with being the biggest part of a continent by himself and all.

They reached the counter feeling exhausted already. This day was going to be infernal, without a doubt. His stomach tied up, Alfred forced himself to pick up a sizeable meal. It would do him no good to starve. A week before, the idea of not being hungry at breakfast would have baffled him. «It is the most important meal of the time, all experts recommended it! » he would have said, making Iggy do one of his priceless face at the display of knowledge all the while flashing his biggest Heroic grin. Today… he wondered if Iggy would even accept to talk to him.

_« Alfred, I want you to tell me why you did it. »_ _Arthur was facing him, sounding neutral, though with a touch of his patronizing authority he used so often on his former colonies. _

At the image, he almost dropped his plate, saved by Jack at the last second.

«Wow there! Careful, mate, you don't want to return to the counter again, do you? » The Australian sounded peppy, but that was so fake not even Alfred at his most oblivious would not catch it.

He felt another wave of pain hit him. Everyone around him was suffering and he did not know what to do to help. He was supposed to be the Hero, yet he was not doing anything!

In the mist of that ocean of hostility, someone quietly waved at them from a table, inviting them to take a seat. To the two, it felt like an oasis in the desert. No suspicion and hostility against them, just a quiet smile.

«Nice of you to invite us, Matt. » Jack sat down.

«Yeah, the atmosphere here is brutal. » Alfred tentatively tried to return to his obnoxiousness, failing in epic proportions.

«E-Everyone is a bit worried because of yesterday, that's all. » Matthew replied, stroking his polar bear's fur. He looked as if his inner strength had dwindled, leaving him even more quiet than usual.

They attempted to make a conversation a few times, starting on meaningless topics, yet it always ended with them going silent soon after. Even Prussia's snarky attempts at pissing Alfred off failed, the latter being too affected by the events to react.

«Wow, seriously, you are even more of a whiny little pussy ass than I thought. » The albino finally gave up. «It takes just two little murders pinned down on you and you wallow down in self-pity? Get real. »

«Gilbert… » The Canadian gave a first warning.

«Look, there's not three hundred ways this can go. » The Prussian started, his tone quite serious. «Either you are the killer and in which case you deserve every bit of crap they give you and you take it like a man or you're innocent and you can just tell them to kiss your ass. Either way, being all emo is just proof that you're a weak little pansy. »

A spark of anger lit up in Alfred's eyes.

«You know what? You're right! I don't have to take up people's crap, starting from you, the annoying Nazi ex-nation. » He stood up, forcing his Aussie brother to stand up or face another embarrassing situation. Choosing the former, he only shot a sorry smile toward the quiet Canadian.

As soon as they were out of reach, Matthew, looking equally annoyed and thankful, glared at Prussia.

«Way to go, Gilbert. » His voice dripping with sarcasm made the self-proclaimed most awesome nation on Earth grin.

«Thank you, Birdie. » He replied, playing with the pancakes he had once more earned from his North American friend.

«Gee, I was being ironic. It's called «reading the mood». » Matthew sighed. Really, he hated when Alfred spread his bad influence on others.

«I know, that's why you're about to thank me. » The Albino continued, offering a crumb to Gilbird who chirped of happiness. Needless to say that Mathew's eyes went wide for a split second. Nonetheless, his calm demeanor had returned when he replied.

«Thank you. »

«You're welcome. » If Prussia had not already called his smile «most awesome smile ever», he would have given it the name of «I-won-and-you-know-it-as-well-as-I-do smile».

«He did look slightly better when he left. Al was always a man of action. That's something that will never change. » The Canadian dodged the burning gaze of his friend and settled for eying the rest of the room. England seemed greatly annoyed this morning; he had barely touched his tea in an hour now. He had made a few phone calls this morning and judging by his tone, there weren't much good news.

«Ah, of course he did. I couldn't let the kid I taught to be badass be all emo; it would kill my reputation. » He leaned against his chair, finished with his pancakes.

Sometimes, Matthew wondered how it was possible to feel both like smacking and kissing one person at once.

* * *

«Hey, Germany! » Alfred called, his voice much stronger than it had been before.

The German turned around, frowning when he recognized who had called him.

«What do you want, America? »

«I want access to the information the investigators discovered so far! » He declared, pointing a finger toward Germany. Ludwig simply sighed, used to unreasonable demands and crazy antics.

«As much as your cooperation is appreciated, America, as one of the main suspects, we cannot inform you of the way the investigation advances. »

«What? But that's not fair! Remember how I cooperated and was all nice and patient when you put a pair of handcuffs on me? And something DID happen while I was chained to Jack here and he didn't see me do anything bad, so why do you still suspect me? » Seriously, it was uncool how much they put him through without so much as a praise for his patience.

«No, Al, it's… » Jack tried to say, but his throat tightened too much to finish what he wanted to say.

«Again, I thank you for cooperating with us, but this is no proof. Similarly, the fact that a murder happened while you were still chained to Australia does not mean that you are not the murderer. » Germany clearly didn't want to have this conversation, but he didn't have much choice at this point. «What it does mean, however, is that if you are the murderer, Australia is your accomplice. »

Alfred felt like he was hit by lightning. They… they suspected _Jack_? But he had done nothing suspicious at all! The only thing they could blame him for was… sticking up for him…

The energy that had returned with the crazy albinos' insults vanished.

What sort of Hero was he? The people around him had to suffer just because they were close to him. That was just… horrible. It left him a very sour taste in his mouth and Alfred couldn't stop himself in time.

«Don't… Don't you_ dare_! » He glared at Germany in an un-heroic way. If anything, that was the look on a villain's face. «You Nazi… don't you dare- »

He was punched square on the jaw, but it was not strong enough to make the Hero go down. What shocked Alfred though was the fact that it was his brother that had punched him.

«Shut up, Alfred, just… shut up. » There was a very pained look on his face. For a second, the American had the certitude that he was being rejected. «Don't put yourself in trouble on my behalf… I can manage. »

Alfred gritted his teeth.

«But you _shouldn't _have to put yourself in trouble for me! I'm the one that has to protect you and Mattie and Iggy when he's not a jerk and the rest of the world and… »

«I know. You are the Hero, so let us, poor little sidekicks, get some of the glory when your butt is on the line. » The Aussie smirked that little bitter smirk that he and Mattie had whenever they had to deal with a big shower of heroism.

Germany cleared his throat.

«Excuse me, I was not finished. As I said, this new death brings the whole affair to a new level. Australia, you will exceptionally be allowed out of those handcuffs for an hour, as your leader requested an audience with you. » Without another word, he took out a key and freed them of each other.

Both massaged their sore wrists and prayed this unexpected freedom would somehow last longer than just an hour.

As if…

«America, I will ask you to follow me. You will stay with me and a few others until Australia returns. Australia, your leader is waiting in the third conference room. »

Alfred uncharacteristically followed the order, although he was grim looking now.

Jack found himself alone in the corridor. Stunned, it took him a moment to recover his senses.

«Right… let's see what Mr. Johnson wants. » He had a bad feeling about this. His boss was not a man to rely on him that much. He respected Jack just fine, adding even a small touch of adoration, but as far as Jack was concerned, they were not the best tag team ever.

Sometimes, he could not tell what was going on in his leader's head.

When he pushed open the door of the third conference room, his intuition intensified.

The atmosphere was heavy. It was impossible to think otherwise.

Mr. Johnson was sitting in a nearby chair, his face stern and his eyes fixed on Jack.

«Hello, Jack. » He politely gestured toward the chair next to him.

«Hello, Mr. Johnson. You wanted to talk to me? » The Aussie took a seat and faced his prime minister. «What is it? »

The Australian leader seemed uneasy, as he started fidgeting with both his hands. It confirmed Jack's fears. For the man to be uncomfortable, it had to be a delicate topic.

«This is about the most recent events. » He spoke with a calm voice, but there were almost imperceptible tremors in it that denied this unshaken exterior. «I requested that you are removed from the affair entirely. »

«WHAT? »

He couldn't believe his ears.

Actually, he could, but that made his innards burn with an incredible anger.

«This is too dangerous for you to get involve, Jack. As no one could have predicted the recent turns of events, I made a demand and they agreed that you may distance yourself from America in order to protect yourself and your reputation. » Cold, calculative, this was the kind of virtue he had been elected for, but it did not bode well with Jack.

«No. »

«Be reasonable. Think about… »

«IT'S ALL THOUGHT OUT! » He screamed. «I will not let Alfred down when he needs me the most. »

«Are you willing to let your own people suffer the consequences of someone else's crime? If you continue on this road, your economy will suffer and you may get sick again. »

«I am certain that my people would not want to live in a country as cowardly as what you described. » He stood up; there was nothing to argue about anymore.

«Jack! » The prime minister stood up as well.

«Mr. Johnson. » The Aussie shot one last look at his leader. «Even like this, you cannot have forgotten what drives our spirit. » He placed a hand over his heart. «Mateship. »

Australia left the room, his spirit burning with passion, and let a poor stunned man behind.

As the door closed once more, the Australian heard someone cough.

«So you will follow the git to the end then? »

Jack turned around to see Arthur, leaning against the wall, his arms crossed, a few meters away from him.

«You do realize that you are now considered as suspicious as the git himself, right? There is no turning back now. » The green-eyed man stared at his former colony.

«Pff, if I could turn my back on Alfred, I'd deserve something much more painful than suspicions. » He shrugged it off.

«Why, Jack? Why do you go to such length for Alfred? You two were never raised together… »

They hadn't. Arthur lowered his head. It was always painful to think of his prized son leaving him so abruptly. To drown his grief, he had turned elsewhere, finding comfort wherever he could. Colonizing Australia had been a way to forget and to remember.

Though many years later, he had seen the git and Australia laughing together like old friends and he had never understood exactly how this had happened. It had pained him to see that _he_ could establish this sort of bonds with strangers when _he_ had so cruelly cut theirs…

«Isn't it obvious, old man? Blood's thicker than water, they say. He's my brother, that's all the reason I need. » Jack stared at England. What was it with people wanting him to abandon Alfred today?

To his surprise, Arthur did not look angry in the slightest. In fact, he even smiled.

«Ah, Jack, I certainly hope that you will get a chance to raise a colony, one day. » He straightened, a fond look in his eyes.

«Why is that? » The Australian was wary of him now. Was he going to try another one of his power hungry schemes? Power attracts power, they say. They forgot to say that power creates a longing for power.

«Because you will find yourself looking at them later and feel so proud… you can't even imagine how much. »

He left Australia blinking, too shocked to say a word, and, just as he was about to disappear around a corner, he heard a small: «Bloody old man. » that made him chuckle.


End file.
